


When It Comes To You

by iaminlovewithyou



Category: K-pop, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bodyguard, Angst, Bodyguard Jeon Jungkook, Bodyguard Kim Namjoon | RM, Bodyguard Min Yoongi | Suga, Flirt Taehyung, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Slow Burn, Yoonseok - Freeform, i'll keep adding tags as and when required, namjin - Freeform, namjoon is a mess of limbs, shameless flirting, taekook, they all have stories going on, they are all just a mess of blushes, yoongi is whipped
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-15
Updated: 2019-03-22
Packaged: 2019-05-07 13:09:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 71,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14671749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iaminlovewithyou/pseuds/iaminlovewithyou
Summary: Taehyung's life changes when his father hires a bodyguard for him, Jeon Jungkook.Yoongi is shamelessly whipped for Hoseok but don't know what to do with it.Seokjin just enjoys making Namjoon blush.Jimin swore he'll never date because he's surrounded by a bunch of losers.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know why but I always associate Taekook with Jungkook's cover of "2U", hence, the title.

“Ah, is this my new friend?” Taehyung asked as soon as he entered the living room. His parents were sitting with a young guy, almost his age. They all seemed to be having some serious conversation right before Taehyung walked in.

“Oh, son, you’re here. I want you to meet Jeongguk,” his father said and gestured towards the new boy, Jeongguk. He stood up from his place and bowed to Taehyung.

“Okay?” Taehyung was confused. He wasn’t sure what was happening. His parents called him this morning, told him they need to talk to him urgently before they leave for China. He expected them to talk all business stuff with him but instead they have a new member sitting with them in his house.

“Taehyung, you should sit,” his mother said.

He sat in a corner, made sure he could see Jeongguk and his parents clearly.

“We’re leaving in a while, as you know. And, well, there’s,” his father couldn’t complete his sentence, he looked nervous, he turned towards his wife for support and she smiled and placed her hand on his.

“Jeongguk here is your bodyguard,” his father said it in a breath.

“What?” Taehyung yelled. He wasn’t expecting this at all. Jeongguk is his bodyguard? What are they? Rich? When Taehyung looked at Jeongguk again, he could have seen the signs. Jeongguk wore a slim black suit, with a white shirt, not to mention he looked stunning but that’s another story. There’s a microphone attached on his suit and the wire attached with his earpiece, which should be weird for a normal person.

“Taehyung, I don’t know how to explain it to you but I don’t think you’ll be safe with us,” his mother sounded way more nervous than his father.

“But why? You guys will only be gone for a few months and I’ll always have friends over, there’s even a guard at our gate as we speak. And even if there will be any danger, I’m skilled, you know it. I didn’t learn all those martial arts for nothing.”

“Taehyung, son, you know how much we love you, this is just a precautionary step. A little, ‘what if’ step.”

“I still don’t see the need for it. You know I’m more that-” he was interrupted by his father’s phone. Taehyung was annoyed, he just wanted to talk to his parents but because of the new project his parents are busier than ever. They hardly talk to each other and they all hardly have any meals together.

His father started talking on the phone and Taehyung looked at Jeongguk. Jeongguk hasn’t said a word since they all sat. It’s not Jeongguk’s place to talk either but Taehyung wanted to know what’s happening. Taehyung kept looking and, in the moment, Jeongguk looked towards Taehyung. Brown eyes on brown eyes. Taehyung held his breathe, he couldn’t look away. Jeongguk’s face had no expression and it made it harder for Taehyung to understand what the other was thinking. They didn’t blink nor did they try to break the eye contact but Taehyung’s father voice caught Taehyung’s attention again.

His father was speaking to him and he wasn’t sure since how long the conversation had been going on, he was too scared to ask now.

“I’m sorry, son. This had to be this way. But we have to leave now. Please don’t give any trouble to Mr. Jeon, he’s only here to help.” His father stood up and walked towards the door. Taehyung was as confused as ever.

He stood up and followed his parents out, they hugged and said their goodbyes and Taehyung told them to go rule over China, which made his mom laugh.

Once his parents were gone he turned towards Jeongguk, who already started walking inside. Taehyung followed him in silence.

It was four in the evening of a Sunday. He should be out with his friends but instead he was here, with Mr. Jeon Jeongguk.

Taehyung wasn’t sure what to do next, how all of this was supposed to take place. Why on earth was he supposed to have a bodyguard and that too a man his age who looks as fine as he does. Has his parents never watched the old English classic ‘Bodyguard’?

“I have questions,” Taehyung said and it made Jeongguk look at him. Taehyung still felt uneasy having Jeongguk’s eyes on him and he don’t know why.

“How about we meet in next half an hour, here. And we can talk about all the details,” Jeongguk said. His voice softer than Taehyung remembered and it made Taehyung curse internally.

Taehyung nodded at him and went to his room. Now even though they had a huge house, they only had one floor. Taehyung’s room was in the right corner and his parent’s room was in the left. The room parallel to Taehyung’s was a guest room, his cousins would stay there whenever they were visiting but now that room was occupied by Jeongguk. Great, now Taehyung had to see him every time he left his room. There were three more rooms in the house, all guest rooms.

Taehyung closed his door as soon as he entered the room. He called Jimin, had to call Jimin.

“Taehyung, we just hung out,” were the first word Taehyung heard when Jimin picked up.

“Jimin, I have a bodyguard now so tell me how your whining is important.”

“You have a what?” Jimin squealed.

“Exactly, and I don’t know what to do. I was fine before but suddenly I am scared.”

“Taehyung, are you alright? Like, are you in danger?” Jimin sounded concerned and it made Taehyung smile.

“I’m okay, Jimin. At least that’s what I think. I don’t know, him and I are gonna sit and talk and I’m nervous. What if I’m in danger?”

“Taehyung, let him explain, see what’s the matter. If you want I can come down to see you.”

“I’ll let you know if I need you here.”

They talked for some more before hanging up. Taehyung still had time and he started deciding if he should change his clothes? He was wearing very loose pants with a simple blue shirt. But what if Jeongguk thought that he wanted to impress him that’s why he changed? Taehyung couldn’t risk that. He contemplated all his options for next ten minutes and then it was time for the meet up.

He walked in the living and found Jeongguk already sitting in one the chairs at the dinning table. Taehyung walked towards him and sat opposite to him.

“So, you wanna tell me what’s going on?” Taehyung asked.

“Yes, sir. As you know, your parents hired to take care of your safety. I’ll have one more member from my team living here with me. We’ll install few more cameras around the house and outside the house, we’ll not invade your privacy, so your room will remain camera free. To ensure your safety, I’ll be with you throughout the day. Now, do you any questions?” Jeongguk asked after he completed his briefing.

“Yes, I do. First, please don’t call me ‘sir’, just call me Taehyung. And second, why? Why do I need safety all of a sudden? My parents are not celebrities and neither am I. What is all of this about?”

Jeongguk looked confused for a second and then his expressionless face was back on. “I don’t know if it’s my place to say but as your bodyguard, I want you to understand the situation so that you can cooperate with me,” Jeongguk hesitated before continuing, “Your father started receiving images of you. In your room. Nothing explicit, lying in your bed, hanging out with your friends. Some were as creepy as you sleeping at 3am, this concerned your father. And they’re not sure if your room is bugged or if there is someone who enters your room to actually take pictures of you.”

Taehyung sat stunned, his parents never said anything. He was scared and a shiver ran down his spine.

“How long have they known?” Taehyung asked and started playing nervously with his fingers.

“About few days, he contacted us a week back, wanted us here before his departure.”

“Hmm,” was all Taehyung could utter. It was a lot to process, a lot to think about in that moment.

“Is that all?” The hesitation in Jeongguk’s voice was clear.

“How long are you staying?” He asked.

“As long as we don’t catch the person behind those pictures.”

“Okay.”

“I need help form your end,” Jeongguk said. His posture firm, Taehyung was surprised that he hasn’t seen one expression on Jeongguk’s face.

“That being?”

“I want a list with images of all the people you’re in contact with on a day to day basis. All the person you work with for business,” Jeongguk looked down and in a low tone said, “or pleasure.” That made Taehyung smile. No matter what kind of a big shot Jeongguk thought he was, Taehyung suddenly had the upper hand in the whole conversation.

“Even one night stands?” Taehyung smirked.

“Umm, yes,” Jeongguk hesitated, not meeting the eyes.

“But, don’t you think it’s misleading to ask a one night stand for a picture or for their phone number?” Taehyung leaned forward on his chair and put his chin between his hands.

“I’ll let you handle that, I’m sure you’re clever enough to figure something out.”

“I don’t think you know me well, Mr. Jeon,” Taehyung was still smirking, the tension in his shoulder from the news that Jeongguk dropped on him, was gone.

“Moving forward, if you’re meeting someone or if someone if coming over, I do need names and if not shared before, numbers as well.”

“Even One-”

“Even one night stands,” Jeongguk finished for Taehyung.

“Well then, we’ll see what can be done. I’ll share the list with you by the end of the night. I have some great pictures of some of my friends and they’ll die of embarrassment if I forward them to you, but now that you’ve ordered me-”

“Please take my job seriously, sir. This might be a joke to you but it’s not for me,” Jeongguk said with a clenched jaw. Taehyung made a mental note to admire that jaw later.

“And you think I’m not scared knowing someone out there is taking pictures of me from my bedroom? You think that’s what’s funny to me?” Taehyung didn’t mean it to sound that rude but he said what he said.

“I- I didn’t mean it like that, just, please be cooperative.”

“Anything else?” Taehyung wasn’t in a mood anymore.

“Not really. Just share everything as soon as you can so I can start working on the profiles.”

Taehyung gave him a nod.

Jeongguk stood up from his spot and awkwardly started walking towards his assigned room.

“I’ll try my best not to come invade your privacy and if I ended up crossing a line, please know it is for your safety. If anything, anyone makes you uncomfortable, do let me know. If you’re suspicious of anyone, let me know of them as well.” Jeongguk stayed at his place and Taehyung turned towards him.

From this angle, Jeongguk looked tall, his features looked sharp but his face looked soft, his cheeks softer and it all made Taehyung smile.

“Yes boss.” This got Jeongguk off guard, he looked at Taehyung with a confused expression.

“Call me Jeongguk.”

“Call me Taehyung, not sir.” Taehyung walked away towards the kitchen.

When Taehyung was sure Jeongguk has left, he walked towards Seokjin’s room. Knocked a couple of times but when he heard no reply, he barged in.

“Taehyung, leave.” Seokjin sounded pissed.

“No, what are you even doing?” Taehyung walked towards his bed and sat in a corner.

“I’m trying to sleep.”

“It’s 7 o’clock.”

“What is your point?”

“You’ll be up all night and will drive me insane for the rest of the night and I can’t with all that. You can’t sleep now.” Seokjin turned towards Taehyung. A weak smile forming on his face.

“I hate you, kid.”

“Enough about me but have you seen that hot bodyguard I have now?”

Seokjin rolled his eyes at him. “Things he said, sounded serious.”

“You eavesdropping now?” Taehyung teased.

“No, you guys were just that loud.”

“We haven’t even done anything yet,” Taehyung winked and received a pillow thrown on his face.

“You disgust me, Kim Taehyung. Now, get out of my room.” Seokjin covered his face with the blanket tried hard not to laugh.

“Come on, let’s cook something, I’m starving.”

Seokjin stood up from his bed, stretched his arms and started walking outside.

“I’ll do the cooking, you just stand there and watch me, I asked you to make rice once and it took you 3 hours.”

“I had no idea how to work the rice maker,” Taehyung said and laughed at the memory.

“You’re impossible.”

 

Once they sat for dinner, they talked lightly, talked about friends and family but ignored the whole Taehyung situation. Seokjin didn’t wanted to intrude, wanted Taehyung to talk to him when he was ready. But, if Seokjin was being honest to himself, he was sure Taehyung wouldn’t talk about it. It’s not his nature. He would worry when he’s alone but in front of the people, even those he calls his family.

“Do you think he ate? He has been inside since he got here,” Seokjin asked.

“I don’t know, I wanna go ask but I don’t wanna disturb him.”

“Yeah, so, I wanted to ask how you feel after having a bodyguard?”

“It hasn’t settled in yet, maybe tomorrow I’ll know for sure. Right now, there’s just this hot man in my house, who’s not even sleeping in the same bed as me.”

Seokjin slapped Taehyung’s shoulder, “What is wrong with you? You can’t flirt with him.”

“What? Why? He’s young, almost my age, is attractive and as long as he’s not uncomfortable, I think we’re good.” Taehyung smiled his signature smile at Seokjin and Seokjin shook his head in disapproval.

“You’re gonna make him uncomfortable.”

“He can let me know about it,” Taehyung said and started putting food in a fresh plate, “till then, I don’t think I need your grandpa advise.” He winked and walked towards Jeongguk’s room.

“You’re stupid, you know that.”

Taehyung wiggled his ass before knocking on Jeongguk’s door.

It took Jeongguk a while to open it, still dressed in his suit, he walked aside to let Taehyung in.

“I wasn’t sure if you’ve had dinner, so I got you food,” Taehyung’s voiced sounded way too innocent to himself, he cleared his throat.

“Oh, thank you,” Jeongguk took the plate from Taehyung and walked towards his desk where he was working.

Taehyung debated what to do for a while, to say there or to walk out. He walked towards Jeongguk’s bed and sat on it crossed leg.

Jeongguk looked at him in confusion, “Are you gonna stay?”

“Do you mind?”

“It’s your house.”

“It’s your room.”

“Stay,” Jeongguk said and started eating his food. Taehyung thought there will be tension between them, not the sexual kind but the awkward king, but there was none.

“About Seokjin.” Taehyung wasn’t sure if Jeongguk knew.

“Yeah, what about him?” Jeongguk’s eyes were fixed on his food and Taehyung suppressed his laugh at how Jeongguk resembled a rabbit.

“How much do you know of him?”

“From my file, he’s adopted, working on becoming a chef. Wants to open a restaurant of his own.”

Taehyung smiled. Seokjin’s dreams always made Taehyung smile.

“He’s great, he is the best cook ever,” Taehyung smiled and Jeongguk gave him a nod.

“His father worked for my father, they weren’t close friends or anything but his father looked up to my father. Seokjin and I were good friends, we used to meet in all these official parties and I have always looked up to him as my elder brother.” Taehyung passed.

“His parents passed away, he was old enough to live alone but my father offer him a place to live. Seokjin, he does well around people, needs that push and support and since he has been here, I have been better as well. I see him as my brother. He is my brother.” Taehyung stayed quiet for a while.

Jeongguk hadn’t interrupted him, hadn’t said a word. He just ate.

“I guess the reason why I told you all this is, I don’t want you to treat him any differently from how you would have treated my real brother. Seokjin is my real brother. I was you to give him the same respect as that.”

Jeongguk gave him a promising nod. Taehyung stood up and walked towards the door, “My friends will be here tomorrow, I would want you to meet them as they’ll be around a lot. If there’s someone from your staff that I need to know of, please do introduce me to them as well.” Jeongguk gave him a nod again. Taehyung wasn’t sure if Jeongguk was just a man of few words or he was just being professional.

“Leave the door open.” Taehyung heard Jeongguk said as he was closing the door. He pushed it open and walked towards his own.

Taehyung locked his door and after he has changed, tucked himself in. He was scared, he wasn’t going to lie to himself now. The mere fact that someone was in his room and took pictures of him, didn’t just made him uncomfortable but made his skin crawl. His mind started racing and he started thinking about every person he has ever known in the last five years or so. Who could it be?

His thoughts were interrupted with a soft knock on his door. With hesitation Taehyung walked towards his door and found Jeongguk standing on the other side.

“Can you keep your door open?” Jeongguk asked.

“What? Why?”

“I need to see you,” Jeongguk said and it made Taehyung’s voice hitch. “What?”

“I mean, if I can see you, I’ll be able to know you’re safe and that way I’ll be able to sleep as well.”

“But, what about that person?”

“He can’t hurt you Taehyung, not till I’m here. My team will find him. Trust us.”

Taehyung nodded. “I’ll keep the door open,” Taehyung said and Jeongguk turned to walk away.

“Jeongguk,” Taehyung called out.

“Yes,” Jeongguk turned.

“Do you want me to keep it open even when I have a one night stand?” Taehyung smirked and Jeongguk just turned around and walked away, a small “Good Night” thrown towards him.

Taehyung went to bed with a lighter mind, he couldn’t believe that that stupid talk with Jeongguk at his door has suddenly made his mood better. He laughed remembering the look on Jeongguk’s face when Jeongguk walked towards the door.

Taehyung wasn’t sure how good of an idea it was to keep his door open. He tossed and turned for a while and then looked out his door, adjusted himself in an angle which game him access to look inside Jeongguk’s room. It was past midnight now but Taehyung could still see Jeongguk on his work desk, his side profile clear in the dim light of his table lamp. The lights of the room were off and Jeongguk was typing something on his laptop.

Taehyung smiled, he felt good knowing someone else cared for his safety as well, even if it was just their job and even if Taehyung’s dad was giving him good money for it. It still felt good.

Jeongguk turned his face and looked inside Taehyung’s room. Taehyung closed his eyes in shook, as if caught doing something wrong. He smiled and opened his eyes again. Jeongguk can’t see him. Jeongguk could see a figure on a bed but he couldn’t see the man himself or his eyes on Jeongguk. It was dark in Taehyung’s room, little light coming in from in between the curtains.

Taehyung could see Jeongguk adjusting for a better angle, failing and turning back to his laptop.

“He’s so cute.” Taehyung smiled.

Taehyung’s life was about to change, with or without Jeongguk in it. But he knew Jeongguk was going to play a major role in it. And maybe, just maybe, he would like him in the frame as well.


	2. Chapter 2

Taehyung tip-toed in Jeongguk’s. It wasn’t what he initially planned but when he realized that Jeongguk sleeps with his door unlocked, he walked right in. Jeongguk wasn’t there. It was empty. He had no idea where Jeongguk could be so he had to move fast. He looked around the place. Jeongguk has settled in. His stuff arranged in order except for his shirt which he wore yesterday, it was there on the chair he was working on last night.

Taehyung picked it up and kept on snooping around. It was hard to find anything; the whole room was so clean. There was a laptop on the table but he knew better to try and open it. There were no diaries, no notes, nothing. Taehyung wasn’t sure what he wanted to find when he entered but now he just wanted something, anything.

“What are you doing?” came Jeongguk’s voice from the door and Taehyung’s soul practically felt his body. He squeezed his eyes shut, scared, to think or any excuse he could.

Slowly, he turned around and said, “This is my house.”

“And this is my room,” Jeongguk eyed him and Taehyung felt shy, “Your point?”

“Mr. Jeon, I don’t have to take permission to roam around my house,” Taehyung wanted to sound confident but he was sure he was failing. Taehyung still had his night pajama-shirt on but Jeongguk was in another one of the suits.

“You’re in my room.” Taehyung didn’t wanted to argue.

“I was going to make breakfast so I wanted to know what you’re gonna have. You weren’t here so I thought I’ll just sit and wait for you,” Taehyung smiled proudly. This should work.

“Seokjin told me you can’t cook.” Jeongguk said and leaned on his doorframe with a wicked smile on his face. Seokjin is in trouble. That’s for sure.

Taehyung took a deep breath and sprinted out of the room. Taehyung saw the way Jeongguk’s lips turned into a smile when he ran past him. That asshole, Taehyung thought.

 

After about an hour when Taehyung and Seokjin were done with breakfast and cleaning up they sat to discuss what needed to be done but they were interrupted by Jeongguk.

“A few of my team members will come here, one will stay in the same house.” Taehyung heard Jeongguk loud and clear but acted like he was still talking to Seokjin.

“And Sir- Taehyung,” that got Taehyung’s attention and he turned towards Jeongguk with his boxy smile.

“If there’s anything I need to know about you or your personal life, please share it with me. It’s important and I want you to take all of this very seriously. I also don’t want you snooping around my room.” The smile from Taehyung’s face was gone and he looked down towards his legs and just said a soft, “okay. Sorry.”

Jeongguk was about to say something but he stopped himself. He then turned towards Seokjin and asked him if he could talk to him in person.

Taehyung has never trusted anyone as much as he had trusted Seokjin. So, if there was something that Jeongguk was up to, Seokjin would have told him.

Taehyung messaged Hoseok and Jimin instead. Asked them if they can come by. Hoseok said he was still in his class and would take about an hour to get there and Jimin said he’ll drop by with Hoseok. They asked if the rest of the people should come as well and Taehyung said no, he wasn’t in a mood to talk to people right now.

With the corner of his eyes he noticed movements in the house. He put his phone in his pocket and saw a few people entering and exiting the house. Seokjin and Jeongguk were done talking and were observing the people as well.

Then entered a tall man, his hair parted from the side and he looked around as if he owned the place. Taehyung eyed him from head to toe, even thought he was dressed in a suit, he didn’t look like the bodyguard to him. The man smiled when he noticed Jeongguk and walked towards him with his dimples on display.

“Seokjin, this is Kim Namjoon, my head,” Namjoon held out his hand towards Seokjin.

Seokjin’s mouth was closed and he just gave him a nod and his hand. “And Namjoon, this is Seokjin, you can say, he is the head of the house.” Taehyung heard that. Taehyung totally heard that.

“I’m the head of the house,” Taehyung said from behind with his arms crossed over his chest. Seokjin gave him a soft smile and Namjoon with smiled and nodded. “You must be Taehyung.”

“Damn right I am.” Taehyung walked towards them.

“Well, it’s nice to finally meet you, Jeongguk sent his report yesterday and I wanted to meet you in person. So, I hope it’s okay that I dropped by,” Namjoon said.

“He sent out what?” Taehyung turned towards Jeongguk who had a blank expression on his face.

“Oh, well it’s just work. You’re our client and the reports help us keep records of things, nothing that you should be worried about.”

“Can I read it?”

“It’s confidential.”

“It’s about me. I want to know.”

“You should just ask Jeongguk then.” Namjoon was a hard one to crack. With that smile, he would and could fool the world.

Taehyung dropped it as soon as another person entered. The shortest in the room. All soft features and wow, what skin. He walked straight to Namjoon and said, “All clear. Nothing to worry about.”

Namjoon gave him a nod.

“This is Min Yoongi, head of security.” Namjoon smiled as he introduced Yoongi. Taehyung noticed that Seokjin hasn’t said anything in a while now which was very odd.

“He’ll also be staying in the same house, if you don’t have an extra room, he can stay with Jeongguk.”

“I want Yoongi to stay in my room. It’ll be easier.” Jeongguk turned towards Namjoon as he started explaining him stuff Taehyung gave no shit about. Instead, Taehyung kept his eyes on Seokjin.

“He’s tall, right?” Taehyung leaned towards Seokjin as he said that.

“Hmm.”

“Is that why you’re nervous?” Taehyung laughed.

“Taehyung, I swear to god, I’ll make you cook your own lunch if you say another word.” Seokjin threatened Taehyung who just kept on laughing.

When everyone was done adjusting their stuff. Namjoon took the couch to complete some work on his laptop, even if he was just on his social media sites, Taehyung couldn’t tell or cared.

Yoongi was still walking around the house to see where all they could plant a CCTV. Then entered the life of the party. Jimin and Hoseok.

They could be heard from a mile before they enter the room. Taehyung smiled to himself. Hoseok could he heard talking to Jimin about how fun the dance practice was today.

When they entered they eyed the living room, looked at all the new faces and with a confuse expression walked towards Taehyung. Taehyung had already informed them about the changes so he couldn’t understand. Without another words, they started walking towards Taehyung’s room.

Right before Taehyung was about to close the door to have privacy Hoseok, very loudly said, “That tiny guy outside Jin’s room is so cute.” And started laughing. Taehyung just shook his head and closed the door.

“You think he’s cute?” Taehyung smirked.

“Not like I would date but like maybe I’ll go for a coffee,” Hoseok laid himself on Taehyung’s bed, probably exhausted from all the dancing.

“Why are they all so good looking? Are you sure they’re here as your bodyguards and not applying for some modeling jobs,” Jimin said and laid next to Hoseok.

Taehyung pulled out a chair and sat without uttering a word. “It’s weird,” Taehyung said after a while of silence.

“What is?” Hoseok asked with his face still looking at the ceiling.

“Having people looking at all my moves, keeping tabs on me, it’s weird.”

“Yeah but you know it’s for your own safety. If what you’ve told us is really what’s happening, we can’t risk it. You’re too important,” Jimin said as a matter of fact and it made Taehyung smile. It made his heart pick up a beat. It’s not like he didn’t know of Jimin and Hoseok’s love towards him, it was just nice to hear about it once in a while.

The door opened and Seokjin let himself in, walked over to Taehyung and pulled out another chair for himself.

“You’ll be okay with all this?” He asked.

“I have to be.”

“if anything makes you uncomfortable, you let me know. I asked them if they’ll put any cameras in your room and they said that’s not necessary as someone will always be with you, so you’re in good hands.”

Taehyung smiled for a second. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t scared of the situation. He was, but his intention wasn’t to make Seokjin worry with him or for him.

“Who did you talk to?” Taehyung asked to change the subject.

“Namjoon,” Seokjin said and looked away.

“The guy you’ve been drooling over?” Taehyung teased and started laughing when Seokjin turned towards him and opened his mouth to speak but words didn’t come out.

“I was not,” Seokjin finally said.

“I’ve never seen you so nervous or quiet in front of anyone ever, you’re so confident all the time and in front of Namjoon, you couldn’t even say your own name. Jeongguk had to introduce you.” This got Jimin and Hoseok’s attention and they sat up.

“He froze?” Jimin yelled in excitement.

“I didn’t freeze.”

“Oh my god, he totally did,” Hoseok joined in and Jimin and him started laughing.

“I did not. You guys are pathetic. Jeongguk was introducing Namjoon so I thought he’ll introduce me as well that’s why I didn’t say anything.”

“All I hear is-” A knock on the door stopped Taehyung’s comment.

“Yes,” Taehyung yelled and when the door opened, a confused Jeongguk stood outside.

“Seokjin, if you have a minute, Namjoon would like to talk to you,” Jeongguk said. Taehyung turned towards Jimin and Hoseok who tried their best not to laugh but ended up bursting into laughter and Seokjin stood, hit each of them on their heads and threatened them that he’ll never cook for them again.

When Seokjin walked out he saw Namjoon wasn’t there so he asked Jeongguk, who informed him that he was outside as he had to rush for a meeting.

Seokjin took a deep breath before he walked out. Namjoon stood by his car and the atmosphere intimidated Seokjin. He kept his eyes fixed on Namjoon when he walked towards him, a little smile on his face as a greeting.

“You wanted to talk,” Seokjin said.

“Yes, I-I, you are, you think, you-” Namjoon stopped himself before he could embarrass himself anymore.

“Maybe we should start again,” Seokjin laughed.

“Yes, I’m sorry,” Namjoon started laughing with him. Seokjin noticed that Namjoon wasn’t looking at him, his eyes were either on the group or at Seokjin’s head but never directly at Seokjin. He smirked at that. Maybe he had the upper-hand in all of this.

“It’s about Taehyung, I trust Jeongguk and Yoongi with my life and I trust that they’ll do everything in their power to keep him safe but I need your help to ensure everything happens smoothly,” Namjoon didn’t stutter.

“Sure, tell me.”

“From what I gathered about Taehyung after meeting with him and from Jeongguk’s report is, he’s a bit impulsive. He’ll do whatever he wants to do. We just want to make sure he don’t get himself in any danger. Like, there will be some restrictions and I don’t know if he’ll follow those but he trusts you, I’m sure he’ll let you know if he’s planning on doing something, we just want you to stop him. I think you’ll be the only one who’ll be able to do it.” Namjoon looked a bit uncertain, as if he wasn’t sure if Seokjin would want to help or not.

“I’ll do anything for Taehyung. Even if I have to beat his ass and make him sit at home, I’ll do it.”

This made Namjoon laugh. He pressed his lips and displayed his dimples again and bobbed his head and shoulders as he laughed.

“Thank you and just inform us if he’s up to something or if there’s something he’s hiding. The more we know, the better.” Seokjin gave him a nod at that.

“And Mr. Kim,” Namjoon started again.

“Please, just call me Seokjin or Jin. But not Mr.”

“Seokjin, as much as we want to catch whoever is behind this, we have to make sure Taehyung is safe. His safety is priority, finding the culprit comes next,” Namjoon explain and Seokjin stayed quiet.

“But your safety is priority as well.” When Namjoon said that he looked straight in Seokjin’s eyes and Seokjin’s heart started racing. All of it felt a little too intimate to him. Seokjin swallowed, his throat too dry.

“I’ll make sure no harm is done to you,” Namjoon said but this time his tone was a lot softer.

Seokjin couldn’t reply. Couldn’t make the words form a sentence.

“And well, yes, please just let us know if you both need anything at all. And about Taehyung, yes, do let us know if he’s up to something,” Namjoon changed the subject, he felt like he made Seokjin uncomfortable.

“I’ll let Jeongguk know,” Seokjin said, his voice sounded weird even to himself.

“Or you can let me know,” Namjoon said and pulled out his card for Seokjin. “I’m sure Jeongguk already has a lot on his plate, it’ll be better if you let me know and I’ll take it from there.”

“Okay,” Seokjin said and took the card from Namjoon.

“I’m sorry, I’ve to rush. It was really nice to meet you.” Namjoon bowed to him and as he was about to sit in his car Seokjin said, “Join us for dinner.”

“What?” Namjoon turned around and he looked confused.

“I’m making dinner for everyone as you all are our guest and you guys are helping us so much, you should join us if you’re not too busy.” Seokjin could hear his own heart. It was loud and fast. Blood rushed towards his face.

“Oh, that’s very kind of you. I don’t want you bother you more than I’ve-” before Namjoon could finish himself Seokjin spoke up, “It’s not a bother, I insist.”

“I’ll try my best. I don’t know how long this meeting with go but if I could end it fast, I’ll join you for dinner,” Namjoon said and thanked him again before getting in the car.

Seokjin didn’t correct him when he said he would join him for dinner. Seokjin just turned the card in his hand a few times before he kept it in his pocket.

 

Jeongguk and Yoongi took turns to check all the security cameras. They wanted to make sure everything was in place. When Yoongi finally went to Jeongguk’s room with his suitcase, Jeongguk said, “He called you cute.”

“Who?” Yoongi didn’t even look back, eyes focused on his stuff.

“That friend on Taehyung,” Jeongguk was full on smirking.

“Yeah, whatever,” Yoongi didn’t wanted to get into this. He knew all of it was wrong.

“You know we technically don’t work with him, so you might still have a chance.”

“I’m not interested, this is my first day here, stop making it difficult.”

“I’m just saying, there’s no harm,” Jeongguk just wanted Yoongi to be out there. It’s been so long since he has seen Yoongi with someone, it has gotten to a point where Jeongguk would just push Yoongi to any person who would show interest.

“It’s not right and you know it.”

“So, if it was right, you would have been down for it?” Jeongguk won’t drop it.

“I’ll not get ahead of myself, I have a lot of work to do and if you wanna play, go find Taehyung.”

Yoongi hasn’t dated anyone in a long time now, maybe since he left college. He has forced himself to work hard to provide for his family. Relationships were hard when you’re working 24/7. You hardly get time to meet or talk over the phone. Texting wasn’t something Yoongi was interested in so he never considered it as an option.

He has tried dating, it never worked out. So, he has stopped forcing himself to go after every person he found slightly interesting.

After a while when they all were done with shifting all of Yoongi’s stuff in Jeongguk’s room, Seokjin called them all for dinner.

It wasn’t dinner time though but no one protested. It was pretty early but everyone was tired enough to consider the early dinner.

They had two small square tables.

“We attach them together whenever we have guests otherwise we just use this one for us,” Taehyung explained.

“We’ll eat on this one,” Jeongguk pointed towards the one on the right, “You guys can eat over there.”

Seokjin, Jimin and Hoseok started arranging dinner. Seokjin made a lot. It took him hours but he finally was able to pull off the dinner.

When they all sat to eat Seokjin kept glancing at the front door, hoped to see Namjoon walking in any minute.

“Looking for someone?” Taehyung teased and Seokjin looked back at the table and realized that everyone has already started eating and he hasn’t even served himself yet.

“No, I was just making sure the doors are locked.”

“Sure, you were.”

They all ate while making small talks. Hoseok, Jimin and Taehyung talked about the places they all could visit now that everyone was kind of free. Seokjin just kept nodding, his mind too occupied with wheatear Namjoon would show up or not. Deep down Seokjin knew the chances of all of that were really slim. With the way Namjoon hurried for the meeting, it looked important and important things tend to run late.

Seokjin saw that Jeongguk and Yoongi served a second plate for themselves, it made him smile. They were eating well and for all the hard work they have done for Taehyung they deserved it.

Seokjin wasn’t hungry much, he ate all he could and he was done for the night. Right when he was about to get up to put his plate away the front door opened and in walked Namjoon.

Namjoon searched the room for Seokjin and when his eyes landed on him, he gave him the brightest smile. Seokjin was too stunned to smile back, so he just kept looking.

“What are you doing here?” Yoongi asked.

“I wanted to check if you have settled in.” Namjoon lied.

“You never do that,” Jeongguk noted and turned back to look at Seokjin, who stood with his plate in his hand.

“Well, it’s a surprise then.”

“Sit, we were just having dinner, I’ll get you a plate,” Taehyung said when he realized Seokjin was incapable of words.

Seokjin let Taehyung take the charge and sat down with a smile on his face. He hoped that Namjoon wouldn’t notice. Seokjin wasn’t sure why all of it made him happy. It wasn’t like he could sit with Namjoon or talk to him, he wasn’t even sure if he wanted to talk to him.

Seokjin never glanced back, never looked back to see if Namjoon was looking or not. He kept his face straight and ate some more.

Once they were all done, the debate on who should clean up started. Seokjin said he shouldn’t do it as he cooked and no one had any reply to that. So, he sat down of a chair and watched them fight. Suddenly they heard a loud noise from the kitchen and when they turned they all saw Namjoon there.

“Don’t tell me,” Yoongi said and started laughing, this was the first time any of them saw Yoongi laugh, expect, of course, Jeongguk. Who joined Yoongi.

“I was just waiting for it,” Jeongguk said and slapped the table as he laughed. Seokjin stood up and walked towards the kitchen, he saw that a plate was shattered in front of Namjoon’s leg.

“Oh my god, are you okay?” Seokjin rushed towards Namjoon with concern.

“Yes, I-I’m fine. I’m so sorry, I was putting it in the sink, it slipped and, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine, it’s just a plate. You didn’t hurt yourself, right?” Namjoon was taken aback by the sudden concern in Seokjin’s voice. His expression was different as well. Jeongguk and Yoongi used to look at him like that in the beginning but not anymore. Now they’re too used to Namjoon’s mess.

“Seokjin, you don’t have to worry, Namjoon has a thing for breaking stuff,” Jeongguk said and laughed again.

Namjoon started picking up the pieces of the plate and Seokjin helped him. They both picked the piece in silence stealing glances at each other.

“Well, that leaves the five of us,” Jimin said. Taehyung, Jeongguk, Yoongi and Hoseok all went to where Jimin stood. They did several rounds of ‘rock, paper, scissor’ till only two of them remained.

“I don’t wanna do it,” Taehyung whined.

“Stop being a kid, this is what you deserve,” Jimin laughed.

It was Yoongi and Taehyung’s turn to clean the dishes, after Namjoon and Seokjin were done with cleaning they sat with the rest and watched Taehyung and Yoongi bicker for a while. Yoongi turned to Seokjin and said, “I can cook as well, I’ll help you from tomorrow, I don’t wanna be stuck doing things with this kid.”

“This kid has a name,” Taehyung said sarcastically.

“I don’t care.” Yoongi rolled his eyes.

Taehyung and him started cleaning in silence. Taehyung kept saying few things now and then to fill the silence but Yoongi never replied. Taehyung turned to see what the rest were up to and saw Jeongguk laugh at something Seokjin said. His laugh was as beautiful as him and Taehyung smiled.

He turned his attention back at Yoongi and with a smirk on his face he said, “Hoseok, that’s his name.”

Yoongi turned to him in complete silence, “So?”

“I thought you should know.”

“And why is that?” Yoongi wasn’t having it but Taehyung was determined.

“Because since we’ve been here washing dishes, this is the first time you’ve replied to me.” That made Yoongi quiet again.

Taehyung smiled, felt good to have an upper hand on Yoongi. Once they all were done with cleaning, Namjoon asked Yoongi if he could talk to him. Yoongi said needed to activate the night cameras and he would be done in few minutes.

Jeongguk went with Yoongi in the room to help him. Jimin said he and Hoseok should leave and Taehyung said he would walk them out. That left Namjoon and Seokjin alone in the kitchen.

After a few minutes of silence Seokjin took the initiative, “Thanks for coming, I didn’t know if you would.”

“You called, so I had to,” Namjoon teased and it relaxed the atmosphere a bit.

“I’ll bug you for stupid things, mind you,” Seokjin said.

“I’m looking forward to that,” Namjoon pressed his lips as he smiled, his dimples popped out.

“How was the meeting though?” Seokjin felt too domestic as he asked that. They met just few hours ago, a question like that was a bit too personal.

“We’ll see tomorrow.”

“They cancelled?”

“I postponed,” Namjoon kept smiling.

“W-why would you do that?” Seokjin could feel his heartbeat getting faster. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

“This is Yoongi’s first day here, I wanted to make sure he was all settled in,” Namjoon said and it felt like a punch to Seokjin. He felt stupid that he had his hopes high. Namjoon is just Yoongi’s boss. Just a guy Seokjin would have to see every now and then.

“And how can I say no to delicious food?” Seokjin gave a weak smile to Namjoon at that.

“Glad you liked the food.”

They both stood in silence again but this time it was awkward, Seokjin felt like he made it awkward by getting his hopes high.

“Will I be seeing more of you?” Seokjin found himself asking. He never planned on asking him such a question but there was no harm.

“Not unless I’m required. Yoongi and Jeongguk are highly trained, so, if they don’t need me, I’ll not be here.” Seokjin could feel a little sadness in his tone but he brushed it off, he was being delusional.

“But if Taehyung does something that Yoongi and Jeongguk aren’t aware of, you can let me know and I’ll be here.” Seokjin just gave him a nod. He could feel Namjoon’s card in his pocket.

Before he could reply to that Yoongi walked towards them, “Let’s go?” he asked Namjoon. Namjoon stepped away in Yoongi’s direction.

“Thank you, Seokjin. For the dinner and your company. I’ll see you around?” Namjoon gave him a little bow.

“I’ll see you around,” Seokjin said in a soft voice and bowed as well.

Yoongi and Namjoon walked out and on their way Yoongi just laughed and looked at Namjoon, “You’re shit at flirting, so formal.”

“Shut up,” Namjoon replied with a shy smile.

Outside they found Taehyung, Jimin and Hoseok, they were talking in low voice with their eyes fixed on Jimin’s phone.

“Oh god, no, really? That’s bad, I feel so sorry for her,” Taehyung said and Hoseok laughed. Punched him on his arm slightly which made Jimin laugh.

Taehyung looked up and saw Yoongi and Namjoon, then he looked back Jimin and Hoseok and said that he should leave. He wanted to talk to Jeongguk about tomorrow.

They all said their goodbyes with hugs and laughter and Taehyung ran inside.

Jimin walked towards Yoongi and Namjoon and Hoseok followed him. Yoongi was confused.

“I don’t think we have officially met, Taehyung just has a lot going on so he forgot to introduce us,” Jimin said and held out his hand, “I’m Jimin, one of his friends.” He smiled when Yoongi and Namjoon shook hands with him, they said their names respectively.

“Hoseok.” He held out his hand towards Namjoon and Namjoon greeted him with a smile. Then he turned his hand towards Yoongi, “Nice to meet you.”

“Yoongi,” Yoongi said after a second and when he took Hoseok’s hand in his, it felt warm and soft. Long fingers wrapped around his thin frame. “Likewise,” he said after a while.

“Well, we should head home, thank you for taking care of Taehyung, if you guys need anything or any help, we’re always here,” Jimin said with a smile. Yoongi was still looking at Hoseok.

“Yes, sure. Thank you,” Namjoon said and they all said their goodbyes. When Hoseok looked at Yoongi to say Goodnight, Yoongi felt like he was caught in action. He felt embarrassed, he looked down and Hoseok laughed.

Once they were gone, Yoongi cleared his throat and asked Namjoon why they were out in the cold.

“I want to talk to you about something,” Namjoon started.

“Is this about Seokjin?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“You missed a meeting, do you want me to say more?” Yoongi folded his hands.

“Okay, I didn’t miss a meeting, I postponed a meeting, there’s a difference,” Namjoon tried to justify.

“Namjoon, we’ve been trying to get them for over three months now and you risked that.”

Namjoon stayed quiet at that. He hadn’t thought it through, that was for sure.

“Would you have wanted me to go in a meeting with a distracted mind?”

“No, but I wanted you to tell me so that we could go together.” Yoongi wasn’t angry, he just wanted things to work out. He wanted Namjoon to use his brain, “IQ that high for what?” Yoongi laughed and Namjoon relaxed. They are okay.

“I bet you just didn’t wanted to talk about the meeting, so what is it?”

“I gave him my number,” Namjoon said as low as he could.

“You what?” Yoongi was surprised, Namjoon wasn’t like that.

“Like, not in a ‘call me, we should go out’ way but more in a ‘If Taehyung does something stupid, let me know’ way,” Namjoon clarified.

“And what did he say?”

“Nothing, that’s what I’m scare of. I’m so confused. Like, at times I think there’s something and the next I think I’m reading too much into it.” Namjoon took a deep breathe and exhaled. His head felt heavy.

“Namjoon, you’re being too hard on yourself, you guys just met. Give it time, if there’s something, you’ll know,” Yoongi said in a calm voice.

“But how? We’ll hardly meet, it’s not like I can just drop by any time, I’ll have to make excuses to be around and I am shit at excuses. And if we don’t see each other often, he’ll get over it.”

“He’ll get over it?” Yoongi questioned.

“Yes, have you seen him? He looks like a Greek God, if I get into it, I’m never getting over,” Namjoon tried to joke but it felt too real. Yoongi just gave him a half smile.

“We’ll figure something out, maybe you’ll be required more than we planned. We’ll see what can be done. You sure about this though?”

“About what?” Namjoon looked at Yoongi in confusion.

“Seokjin.”

“No, I’ll be honest. I just think it’s the first day infatuation and we’ll all wake up tomorrow feeling stupid.”

“You’re thinking too much, just go home and sleep on it.” Yoongi pushed Namjoon towards his car.

Namjoon always came to Yoongi for advice because no matter how hard it was Yoongi would never lie to him, never sugar-quote things for him. He would never give him false hopes and Namjoon liked that. He wanted to told the truth. He wanted to know thing as they are rather than a manipulated version of it.

Namjoon left with a goodbye. Yoongi stayed out for a while longer. He should have gone for a vacation just like Namjoon suggested a month ago, he shouldn’t have been here but Jeongguk asked for him and he couldn’t say no to Jeongguk.

This was Yoongi’s last project before his hiatus. Yoongi just wanted this job to be done with, wanted nothing more than to catch the culprit and to be out in different countries. He planned on sleeping a lot and could go for a night travel but those are just plans. Namjoon and Jeongguk asked him if they could join but he wanted to do this alone. He wanted to be alone.

 

Once inside, Taehyung went to wish Seokjin but Seokjin was already in his bed. He then walked towards Jeongguk’s room.

“Are you free?” He knocked at the door with a question. The door was already open but Jeongguk looked busy.

“Yes, do you need something?” Jeongguk looked up from his laptop.

“I wanted to talk,” Taehyung stayed at the door.

“Sure, come on in,” Jeongguk smiled and gestured towards his bed, “You can take that, I’ll sit here.”

“What is it about?” Jeongguk asked.

“I know you’ll not tell me what you wrote in that report, so, I’ll just talk about other things,” Taehyung teased and Jeongguk let out a soft laugh.

Taehyung walked towards the bed and sat on the edge with his legs crossed. Jeongguk adjusted his chair so he was facing Taehyung.

“I thought about what you said and well, I wanna help. Like, my friends, they’re coming tomorrow. They drop by a lot, I’ll give you a list with names, so it’s easier. I’m close to all of them so, if you’ll see them as suspects please don’t make it very obvious. But if you’re sure about someone, then I would want you to tell me.”

Jeongguk just nodded at that.

“So, enough about me, tell me about yourself.”

“What about me?” Jeongguk asked.

“Are you single?” Taehyung winked.

“That’s personal,” Jeongguk said, his voice sounded weird but he ignored it.

“Are we not friends?”

“You’re my client.”

“Don’t make it weird, I want us to be friends,” Taehyung sounded hopeful and Jeongguk kept looking at his face. Taehyung had sharp features but he looked soft in the night light.

“Don’t make it hard on me.”

“I’m a great friend, ask anyone,” Taehyung protested.

“What do you do?” Jeongguk asked instead.

“What?” Taehyung asked in confusion, his head tilted towards the right. He wasn’t sure he understood Jugnkook’s questions.

“I mean, you’re in your early twenties, from what I’ve gathered, you don’t go to school or college anymore, so, what do you do?”

“For living?” Taehyung asked with hesitation.

“You can take it as that.”

“I help my dad?” Taehyung meant it as a statement but it came out as a question.

“Okay, so that’s all.” Taehyung felt like the conversation was coming to an end.

“I take pictures, I draw,” Taehyung said as Jeongguk stood up from his seat.

“What?” Jeongguk turned towards Taehyung.

“I’m a paid photographer, it started as a hobby but then people started liking it, so I take pictures. More like, I help with portfolios and stuff like that, help bloggers and all. My charges are less because I only wanted to do it for fun but I started getting a lot of requests and it started getting hectic so Jimin and Hoseok came up with a charging chart. It feels good to earn this way, I don’t have to rely on my parents anymore and it don’t make me seem like the rich brat people think I’m.” Taehyung kept his eyes on Jeongguk. Noticed the expression change from confusion to understanding.

“You still do it, I mean, during my stay here, do you still plan on doing it?” Jeongguk asked and sat back down.

“Why? Do you want me to take pictures of you?” Taehyung teased and leaned forward towards Jeongguk.

“I don’t mean it like that,” Jeongguk hesitated.

“I’ll not charge you,” Taehyung teased again.

“I mean, if you’ll continue it, I’ll need a list of all your clients, past, present and whoever approaches you.”

“You’re so boring, this is all business to you.” Taehyung huffed and leaned back on the bed.

“I’m serious, Taehyung, it’s important and you said you’ll help.”

“Okay, yes, I’ll,” Taehyung said and put his hands up in surrender.

“What do you draw?” Jeongguk asked.

“What?”

“You said you draw,” Jeongguk was curious.

“I-I, I’m not that good. It’s rough and it’s mostly for me,” Taehyung felt nervous, he kept his eyes down and started playing with his knee to distract himself.

“Anything you can show?” Jeongguk asked in a soft voice after he saw the hesitation in Taehyung.

“The one above your desk,” Taehyung said in a whisper, prayed that Jeongguk hadn’t heard him. But the movement on Jeongguk’s end said otherwise. Jeongguk stood up to look at the picture. It was a bed, drawn in dark shadows, sheets a mess and pillows puffed on one side. The walls were dark because of the shadows that came from the window.

“It’s beautiful,” Jeongguk said and sounded a bit breathless.

Taehyung kept his eyes down, gaze fixed on the floor.

“What does it mean?” Jeongguk asked.

All of this was too intimate for Taehyung, his art was his own. It wasn’t like no one knew but no one cared enough to ask. Jimin and Hoseok were more into the kind of art that speaks. The kind like dance, that moves and can be expressed through your body. They have praised Taehyung’s art but they never really understood it. Seokjin on the other end have stayed quiet. He was the kind who praise with their silence. He always looked at Taehyung with so much pride after Taehyung showed him one of his work that it would warm his heart.

Taehyung has never spoken about his work, never expressed them in words.

“It’s about lovers,” Taehyung said and looked up. Jeongguk was still looking at the picture with awe and it did something to Taehyung. He kept looking at Jeongguk’s face, his mouth open in surprise.

“It’s a good love story,” Jeongguk turned towards Taehyung and smiled as he said that.

“You-you think so? Why?” Taehyung asked. He was the first one who said that.

“The sheets make it look like they had a great night,” Jeongguk said while he kept his eyes on the wall and Taehyung kept his eyes on him.

“People always say it has a sad tone to it,” Taehyung pointed.

“Because of the dark shadows? It looks more like during the hard time, they still pulled through.”

Taehyung was amazed, he kept looking. He was confused. Jeongguk wasn’t supposed to get it. “Do you want to, maybe-”

“Am I interrupting something?” Yoongi said as he entered the room.

“Oh no, Taehyung came to inform his friends will be here tomorrow,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung walked towards the door.

“The ones we saw today?” Yoongi asked.

“And more,” Taehyung said and then he turned to Yoongi and winked, “Don’t worry, Hoseok will be there.”

“Send us a list of everyone who’ll be here,” Yoongi said as he rolled his eyes.

“He said he’ll send it by the morning,” Jeongguk replied instead.

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow, goodnight.” Taehyung started closing the door and then it hit him, “And Yoongi, treat this as your home.”

“I shouldn’t,” Yoongi stated. “This is my work place, if I treat it like home, I’ll not be doing my job.”

“Okay, I mean, relax now and then. If you need something, Seokjin and I are here.”

They all said goodnight and Taehyung walked in his room, he was about to shut the door when he remembered how Jeongguk has asked him to keep it open.

He went to bed shortly after. He kept looking at Jeongguk’s room every now and then. The light was still on but Jeongguk wasn’t at his desk, maybe he was helping Yoongi.

Taehyung tossed and turned for a while. Tomorrow will be dramatic, if he could, he would have asked his friends to meet him somewhere else or at someone else’s house but he knew Jeongguk would’ve said no.

Hoseok and Jimin promised him that they’ll be there for him and he trust them. Taehyung tried distracting himself, he thought of Hoseok and if Hoseok was serious when he called Yoongi cute or he just meant it as an observation? He needed to figure that out. What was up with Seokjin as well? Him and Namjoon seemed weird. He needed to talk about that as well.

After Jeongguk was done with Yoongi’s task, he turned all lights off, he looked at Taehyung’s room and saw that Taehyung has his door open. Jeongguk smiled to himself, maybe they could be friends if this went well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Done did that! I'm really sorry it took me a while to update this, I wasn't well the last few weeks so I just couldn't write.  
> Anyway, I hope you like the starting on Namjin and idk if i'll call this the start of Yoonseok yet.
> 
> Let me know what you think of the chapter and which all parts you liked.  
> Thank you


	3. Chapter 3

Jeongguk found himself in Taehyung’s room surrounded by Taehyung’s friends. There were easily around ten people in the room and by the look of that he could tell that Taehyung was popular.

Jeongguk walked towards a corner and stood there for a while, he was in his casuals as he doesn’t feel like suiting up for a bunch of people.

With the crowd in the room, Taehyung was nowhere to be seen and neither was Jimin or Hoseok. The ten people just sat on Taehyung’s bed and kept eyeing Jeongguk, would point at him or would just laugh. Jeongguk couldn’t care less.

Yoongi was with Seokjin, he wanted to learn all the ins and outs of the house and Seokjin was more than happy to help. Jeongguk stayed at his position for about fifteen more minutes before Taehyung walked in with a bunch of people. A girl with straight blonde hair in a mini skirt, she looked like she walked right out of a photoshoot. Right next to the girl was a guy around Taehyung’s height, brown hair and ripped jeans. Too ripped for Jeongguk’s taste. Behind them were the trio.

Taehyung entered with a loud laugh and stopped as soon his eyes landed on Jeongguk. He ushered the guests to take a seat in his room and walked towards Jeongguk. When he was sure no one could hear them, he said in a low voice, “Why are you here?”

“It’s my job,” Jeongguk said.

“To be in my room?” Taehyung stepped closer just to make sure that his voice wasn’t heard by a third person. He could see Jeongguk tensed up and he smiled.

“Yes.”

“Then why aren’t you here during the night?” Taehyung couldn’t have let it go.

“This is not the time to joke, go back,” Jeongguk said and took a step backwards.

“But why are you here and why are you wearing black sunglasses indoors?” Taehyung asked.

“I’m keeping an eye on them, everyone’s a suspect and I need to study them. To make sure they’ll not harm you.”

“Just because you case so much about me,” Taehyung smirked and poked Jeongguk’s chest, “I’ll let it pass.” He happily walked back to his friends who were talking about some photography assignment for Taehyung.

There were way too many people who were there for Jeongguk to focus on, so he made sure to look at each and every one of them specially when they were close to Jeongguk. The new guy, Hyu, sat next to Taehyung for the majority of the time, with the girl in the shirt, Una. They all sat and laughed for a while but the guy kept looking back at Jeongguk.

Jeongguk could see that Hyu would lean too close to Taehyung and would whisper something in his ear that would get a laugh out of Taehyung. Hyu’s touches weren’t so friendly either but from what Jeongguk had known of Taehyung in the last few days, he could say that Taehyung was one of the most clingiest person he has witness so maybe it was all normal.

Taehyung stood up and asked everyone if they wanted something to which everyone started ordering their drinks. When Taehyung complained that he only got two hands and a small tray, Hyu got up from his place and offered to help.

“We get it you’re dating, stop being annoying,” Una said and Jeongguk froze on his spot. The whole room busted into laughter but Jeongguk couldn’t hear a word. Taehyung had a boyfriend. Taehyung never mentioned that, Jeongguk was sure of it.

Taehyung smiled awkwardly but he turned to face Jeongguk, Jeongguk couldn’t face Taehyung now, he was getting angry and he didn’t wanted anyone to see him like that. Hyu was already out towards the kitchen and Jeongguk walked towards Taehyung’s room’s door. He walked fast and hard but as soon as he left the room Taehyung got a hold of his hand.

“Where are you going?” Taehyung asked, there was something in Taehyung’s voice. Hesitation? Guilt?

“My work here is done,” Jeongguk replied in a firm voice. He made sure to not let Taehyung know he was angry. He couldn’t even understand himself what got him so fired up. So what Taehyung had a boyfriend?

“You’re not gonna keep an eye on everyone anymore?” Taehyung asked and this time his voice sounded like he was scared. His hand was still holding Jeongguk’s wrist.

“I’ve seen enough,” Jeongguk said and shook Taehyung’s hand off off him.

Instead of walking towards his own room he walked outside in to get some fresh air and to clear his head.

Hoseok walked towards Taehyung who was still at his door. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Taehyung replied.

“Maybe I should go ask him,” Hoseok said.

“If he looks pissed, just give him some space,” Taehyung said and turned around to walk back inside.

Hoseok started walking towards the main door but his eye caught a tiny creature, Min Yoongi just walked inside his own room. Hoseok stood by the main door and he was conflicted for a second. For a second he just wanted to go into Jeongguk’s room. He looked out and saw Jeongguk, who sat on the ground and stared at the clouds. Hoseok thought that Jeongguk needed to be alone otherwise he would have gone to Yoongi.

Hoseok started walking back towards Taehyung’s room when he saw the lights in Jeongguk and Yoongi’s room go off. He walked towards their door and stood there as he watched Yoongi scatter his clothes on a chair.

“What are you looking for?” Hoseok found himself asking.

Yoongi didn’t even bait an eye at him, he acted as if he knew Hoseok had been there.

“None of your business.” Yoongi knew he was being rude but he just wasn’t in a mood.

“Fair enough,” Hoseok said and walked inside.

“Why are you with your clique?” Yoongi asked. Still looking through his bad.

“Clique? Is that what you call us?” Hoseok laughed and this one time Yoongi looked back at Hoseok.

Yoongi kept quiet. “Why is it so dark here? Why are all the curtains drawn and why are all the lights out?” Hoseok asked.

“Why are you still here?” Yoongi was tired and he needed a nap, he couldn’t find his pajama and he was just pissed.

“You never asked me to leave,” Hoseok said in a low voice and sat on the edge of the bed. Yoongi stayed quiet. Once Yoongi found what he was looking for he walked into the bathroom to change and when he got out Hoseok was still there.

Yoongi ignored him all together and went towards his side of the bed and laid on the bed. Hoseok took it as an invitation and laid down on Jeongguk’s side of the bed. Yoongi laid straight, his face up towards the celling and Hoseok mimicked him.

“If you’re uncomfortable or want me to leave, you can say so and I’ll leave you alone,” Hoseok reminded Yoongi.

They stayed like that for just a few seconds before Hoseok pointed towards the celling and said, “That’s Jupiter.”

He smiled and looked at Yoongi, who was looking at him in confusion.

“And that’s Venus and Saturn is over there,” Hoseok kept pointing. “When Taehyung and I were little we cried to Taehyung’s parents so they would get him the glowing star stickers and when they got it, we created our own galaxy. We didn’t know much of planets back then so we would just randomly point at a planet and say it what we wanted,” Hoseok laughed as he remembered the childhood.

Yoongi wasn’t looking at the stars, his eyes were fixed on Hoseok, Hoseok was animated. He spoke with actions, moved his hands a lot, made faces a lot while he was speaking and explaining. His face would light up when he was happy.

Hoseok turned to Yoongi and yoongi panicked, he looked up at the celling again and said, “You all were dumb kids, they are all starts and there’s no planet anywhere.”

Hoseok laughed out loud and threw his pillow at Yoongi, Yoongi caught and pressed it on his side. “You’re being mean, we were kids and Taehyung’s dad got us the all star stickers. So, we built a universe from what we had,” Hoseok explained.

Yoongi just shrugged, pretty sure Hoseok couldn’t see it.

“What was your universe as a child?” Hoseok asked with so much excitement that it took Yoongi off guard.

Since Hoseok has entered the room Yoongi had been nothing but rude with him and yet here he was in bed with him talking about stars and universe. Still as bright as he entered.

Yoongi thought there was no harm in replying, Hoseok was being nice, “I played basketball a lot and Piano.” He kept it short and simple.

“You played basketball? Wow and you can play piano? Wow,” Hoseok sounded hyped. He has turned towards Yoongi, his body rested on one side and his face straight towards Yoongi. Yoongi still kept his gaze up.

“Yeah, I learned it when I was pretty young and played it till I couldn’t find time.”

“Will you teach me?” Hoseok asked.

“What? Basketball or Piano?”

“Anything, as long as you will.”

“I can’t promise anything,” Yoongi found it hard to say no. It has never happened before. He had easily said no to so many people before.

“You dance?” Yoongi asked for a minute of silence. He thought it was only polite if he would ask the next question.

“How do you know that?”

“I’ve a file on you. It was mentioned,” Yoongi said.

“Oh, and here I thought you were taking interest in me,” Hoseok laughed again. His laugh was bright, it did something to Yoongi but he couldn’t figure out what.

“I’m not,” Yoongi said bluntly.

“Not what? Interested in me?” Hoseok asked.

“Yes, you’re a suspect.”

“I’m a what? Suspect? You think I’m behind all of this?” Hoseok sounded genuinely hurt and he stood up and sat straight. “Taehyung is one of my best friend.”

“I know,” Yoongi said firmly.

“And yet you think I could be behind all of it?”

“I’ve seen families turn against each other and do crazy shit, so, yes, I do believe you are capable of this and could be behind it. Everyone’s a suspect till they’re not.”

“You hurt me, Min Yoongi,” Hoseok said dramatically but there was sadness in his voice.

“Namjoon calls him a heartbreaker,” Jeongguk said from the door.

“Are you okay?” Hoseok asked instead when he remembered why he left Taehyung’s room in the first place.

“I’m good. Can you do me a favour and give me a list of all the people present in that room and their relationship with Taehyung?” Jeongguk asked politely.

“Sure, you can also ask Taehyung, he would be happy to help.”

“He keeps lying, so it’s hard to take his word.” Jeongguk knew he sounded bitter but he said what he said.

“Oh, yeah, sure. I’ll message them to you.”

“Thanks, do you have my number?” Jeongguk asked and finally entered the room. Walked towards the bed stand and took off his watch.

“I’ll take it from Taehyung, don’t worry. Let me know if I can be of any other help,” Hoseok said and stood up. He could tell it was time for him to go. He walked towards the door and looked at yoongi, “I’ll see you around, Mr. Pianist.” Yoongi just kept his eyes on Hoseok till he disappeared into Taehyung’s room.

“You told him?” Jeongguk shoved Yoongi’s shoulder playfully.

“Shut up.” And Jeongguk laughed.

“Why are you in a mood?” Yoongi asked.

“It’s nothing, Taehyung isn’t helping much.” Jeongguk laid down where Hoseok was laying.

Yoongi waited for Jeongguk to elaborate.

“He has a boyfriend, did he ever mention it to you?” Jeongguk took a deep breath, tried calming himself down.

“No. But what’s the problem here? The boyfriend or Taehyung having a boyfriend and hiding it from you?” Yoongi asked and it was Jeongguk’s turn to be quiet.

“Kid, I keep telling you, keep your feelings separate from the boy. He’s too likable and lively and I see you. I see you getting close to him and it’s only been just a bunch of days. He’s your client and he even has a boyfriend. Don’t let his life affect yours. You walked out on your job today, do you think that’s ideal?” Yoongi wanted Jeongguk to understand the depth of it. Wanted him to understand how serious all of it was.

This could just be attraction or it could be more but whatever it was, it wasn’t professional.

“I’m sorry, I’ll be more careful next time. It’s just he caught me off-guard with all of it.”

“Are you sure it’s not his ass that caught you off guard?” Yoongi tried making a joke to lighten up Jeongguk and it worked.

“You’re the one to talk when you go all gaga as soon as Hoseok is around.”

“You’re tiring me, kid. I’m gonna take a nap,” Yoongi said and turned around to nap. Jeongguk just laughed and walked outside.

By the evening everyone has left and it was just Taehyung, Jimin, Hoseok and Seokjin in the house.

They were all sitting in the living room doing their own work while the music played in the background. Yoongi was still in his room. Jeongguk and Seokjin sat side by side and the rest were sitting on the floor.

“Where’s the dimple guy? Will he not be around?” Jimin asked Jeongguk who just shrugged.

“In this household, we answer each other,” Seokjin said and nudged Jeongguk.

“It’s Namjoon, he’s busy. He won’t be here till it’s an emergency.” Seokjin sulked, he didn’t wanted people to see him that way so he started brushing his nose as if there’s dust on it.

“Can’t we call him to say hello?” Jimin was hyper, Seokjin wondered what all of it was about?

“Why?” Jeongguk asked.

“Because I wanna thank him for sending two entertaining guys here,” Jimin snorted.

Jeongguk just rolled his eyes, “We’re not here for your entertainment, we’ve work to do.”

“And you ran away from it just few hours ago,” Jimin said and got a punch on his leg by Taehyung.

“Call him,” Hoseok said this time. Hoseok and Jimin walked towards Jeongguk and stood behind the sofa. Taehyung stayed seated where he was and Jeongguk looked at him. He avoided looking at Jeongguk.

Jeongguk took out his phone to dial Namjoon when Jimin pressed the facetime icon.

“What’s the point if we can’t see him?” Jimin said and Seokjin smiled. Seokjin shifted a little so his face wasn’t seen on the screen.

It took a couple of rings for Namjoon to pick up. He was still in a suit and sat in what looked like a office. He had his work glasses on and Seokjin thought that was pretty cute.

“Jeongguk, this better be an emergency because I’m about to leave for a meeting,” Namjoon said and didn’t even look at the screen. It looked like his phone was placed on a phone handler and he was freely moving his hands left and right to gather his stuff.

“Hi Namjoon,” Jimin and Hoseok cooed. That made Namjoon look at the screen, he smiled and sat on his chair.

“Hi guys, I’m sorry, I’m kinda in a rush-” He stopped mid way when Seokjin appeared on the screen, Jeongguk found it hard to fix an angle so he tilted the screen horizontally. It made everyone appear on the screen. Seokjin just smiled and Namjoon just kept looking.

“We’re really sorry for disturbing you, please go ahead with your meeting, we just called for no reason,” Jimin said apologetically.

Namjoon looked at his watch and back at the screen, “I’ve some time, what’s going on there?” Namjoon lied.

“Just was wondering when you’ll drop by because Jeongguk and Yoongi are boring,” Jimin complained and the conversation went back and forth for a while. Seokjin stayed quiet throughout the whole thing which was so unlike him.

“Jeongguk,” Namjoon said after few minutes, “You should message me tonight.”

Seokjin’s eyes landed on Namjoon in a second. He knew it too well who the message was for.

“What? I should message you tonight?” Jeongguk asked.

“Yeah, message me tonight,” Namjoon repeated. His eyes would land on Seokjin every now and then.

“And say what?” Jeongguk was very confused.

“Yeah, and what should he say?” Seokjin asked. His lips pressed in a thin line as he tried suppressing his laugh.

“Anything, just tell me about your day or just send a picture of yourself and we’ll take it from there,” Namjoon said and smiled. His dimple on display again.

“What? You want me to send you a picture of myself?” Jeongguk found it really hard to digest. Seokjin tried controlling his laugh for a long time but when he couldn’t he just stood up and walked towards the kitchen so he could smile freely.

“You know what, Jeongguk?” Seokjin could hear Namjoon’s voice from the living room, “Don’t message me. In fact, only call me when it’s urgent. I’ve to go now.” With that they all said byes and hung up the call.

“Believe me, he’s actually pretty sorted but I don’t know what happened today.” Seokjin heard Jeongguk as he spoke to Jimin and Hoseok.

Yoongi stayed in his room, he could hear them talk as they made plans for dinner but Yoongi ignored it all. He had offered to help in the kitchen with Seokjin but Seokjin has declined. Said, he would call Yoongi himself if and when things are out of his hands. Yoongi only went outside to have dinner with them, even then he stayed silent. It was hard enough for him to concentrate on work when Hoseok and Jimin were being so loud all the time, they wouldn’t leave Taehyung’s side even for a second.

Yoongi wasn’t joking when he told Hoseok that he was a suspect because Hoseok was and so was Jimin and Seokjin. It’s Yoongi’s job to be sure that the person Taehyung calls family aren’t the one behind it. His eyes would land on Hoseok every now and then during dinner but Hoseok wouldn’t bait an eye at him. He was too focused on his food and Jimin’s performance with him. Yoongi zoomed out their conversation as soon as he realized he was eves dropping.

Jeongguk looked uncomfortable as well, he wouldn’t look up at anyone and would eat his food quietly. Taehyung was no different but Taehyung was interacting with Hoseok and Jimin. Seokjin would ask questions as well and the dinner table looked busy. Yoongi missed Namjoon at that time, with Namjoon the silence has never been awkward. He had never felt the pressure to talk, he had never felt the need to make small conversations with him in order to keep him entertained. The dinner would have been less awkward for Yoongi.

Once everyone was done, Hoseok went to Seokjin’s room with him and Taehyung went with Jimin in his room. Jeongguk and Yoongi went to theirs.

“I’ll sleep right off,” Yoongi said.

“You slept all afternoon,” Jeongguk replied.

“I didn’t, that Hoseok guy interrupted my sleep time.”

“And do you mind?” Jeongguk teased.

“Don’t start with me kid.” Before Yoongi could say something, Taehyung appeared at their door.

“Hoseok and Jimin will be staying the night,” He informed both of them and when Jeongguk refused to reply Yoongi said a simple ‘okay’.

“Can I talk to you for a second?” Taehyung turned towards Jeongguk and then towards Yoongi, “Do you mind?”

“No,” Yoongi said and laid down on the bed.

Taehyung still stood at the door awkwardly. Jeongguk refused to even look at him and pretended like he was busy with something on his laptop.

“You can start,” Yoongi said and closed his eyes. Taehyung cleared his throat awkwardly and when Yoongi opened his eyes Taehyung was still at the door.

“Don’t tell me you want me to leave?” Yoongi sat up.

“There’s no place else to go, sorry.”

“Take him in your room,” Yoongi said and looked at Jeongguk, who was still busy typing gibberish.

“Jimin is asleep,” Taehyung said apologetically.

“I just wanna sleep today,” Yoongi said and grabbed his pillow and blanket, “how hard is that?” he added.

Once Yoongi was outside he settled on the sofa. The sofa was big and spacious enough for him but it wasn’t nearly as comfortable as the bed. He made himself comfortable and prayed no one else would disturb him anymore. He could hear Hoseok and Seokjin’s laugh every now and then from Seokjin’s room but he ignored it.

Seokjin was in his bed and acted like he wanted to sleep but Hoseok just wouldn’t leave. “Why are you still here?” Seokjin yelled.

“Why do you want me to leave?” Hoseok laughed. Something was fishy, Hoseok could tell.

“Just leave, I’m tired.”

“You’ve been smiling since the dinner ended and I won’t leave till you tell me what’s going on,” Hoseok said and Seokjin covered his face with his blanket.

“Why don’t you go entertain Taehyung or Jimin?”

“Don’t change the topic, Seokjin. Tell me,” Hoseok almost yelled.

“Go talk to Yoongi, I think he’s calling you,” Seokjin said and Hoseok’s body language changed.

“Did I say something wrong?” Seokjin asked.

“Yoongi thinks I’m a suspect.”

“So?” Seokjin wasn’t impressed or surprised.

“So, you think that’s fine? Thinking I’m a suspect? How would you feel if he thinks you’re a suspect?” Hoseok asked.

“I would feel like he’s doing his job right. If he just lets us off the list just because we’re close to Taehyung, that’ll be wrong.”

“You’re talking just like him,” Hoseok pouted.

“Go talk to him and ask him why he thinks you’re a suspect,” Seokjin tried one last time for Hoseok to leave.

“Tell me first and then I’ll leave, I promise,” Hoseok said and crossed his legs to be comfortable on the bed.

“Oh God.” Seokjin thought about it for a second, it would be nice to have someone to talk to about it and Hoseok is the guy who wouldn’t utter a word to anyone. “You promise to not tease me and just leave.”

“Yes,” Hoseok said enthusiastically.

“Fine, I’ve to message Namjoon,” Seokjin said and waited for a reaction but all Hoseok did was sat there with his mouth hung open.

Then in a very low whisper he said, “Their boss Namjoon?”

“Yes,” Seokjin was almost blushing now.

“But why? And how?” Hoseok was confused. Happiness and surprise was clear on his face.

“He gave me his number and asked me to contact him in case of an emergency-”

“But what’s the emergency?” Hosoek looked serious.

“Let me complete. He said I should message him if and when there’s a need and I didn’t know what to say so I didn’t but then today over the facetime when he asked Jeongguk to message him, he looked at me. It was so obvious but I just don’t know what to say and it’s scary.”

“Do you… like him?” Hoseok asked carefully.

“It’s too early to say.” Seokjin hadn’t put himself out there a lot, he never had the time. The time between his course classes and cooking classes hardly left him with much time to date.

“Don’t start with a dick pic,” Hoseok said and Seokjin laughed. Maybe they’ll be okay. “Get out of my room.”

“I’m only trying to help,” Hoseok said as he was pushed outside. Seokjin locked his room. He flustered for him to have Hoseok back in the room.

He laid down on his bed and looked at his phone, he should message. But what if Namjoon was sleeping? But what if he was waiting? He wouldn’t wait, that would be stupid, right?

There were million things going on in Seokjin’s head when he dropped a single _Is this the dimple boy?_ In the textbox and hit send.

Within few seconds he got a reply.

Namjoon: you like them?

Seokjin: they don’t look bad.

Namjoon: hahaha, well I was kinda expecting a picture of you.

Seokjin: I’m in bed.

Namjoon: is… that an invitation?

Seokjin blushed from head to toe. That wasn’t what he meant. But now he couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Seokjin: I meant it’s dark so I couldn’t take a picture.

Namjoon: the flash is there for something.

Seokjin: what kind of a human being clicks a picture with a flash? you disappoint me.

Namjoon: you looked good today.

Seokjin: and nothing has changed since.

Namjoon: I would still need a picture to make sure.

Seokjin: you can see it in flesh if you drop by tomorrow.

Then there was silence for a few minutes. Seokjin wasn’t sure if he said something wrong or Namjoon was just busy.

Namjoon: tomorrow’s hard. I won’t be able to make it.

Seokjin: I was just joking, you don’t have to and if you’re busy, we can talk later.

Namjoon: no, I’m free. I wanna talk to you. Do you mind if I call?

Seokjin debated for a minute. Texting made his heart race so fast he couldn’t even imagine a phone call. Maybe he debated for too long because Namjoon messaged again.

Namjoon: I’m sorry if I panicked you, we don’t have to speak on the phone. I’m fine here as well.

Seokjin decided to call. He dialed his number and Namjoon picked it with the first ring.

“I thought you got angry,” Namjoon sounded tired.

“You sound tired,” Seokjin said instead.

“It was a long day. My hand was tired and I couldn’t text anymore so I asked if we can speak like this but then you stopped messaging and I thought you were angry,” Namjoon explained.

“Your hands were tired doing what?” Seokjin teased and held back his laugh but he could hear Namjoon’s little laugh on the other end.

“Typing, I wish I had something better to do with them.” They laughed a little and went back to talking about their day. Namjoon told him he had to get up at six for some shit work and Seokjin kept pressuring him to sleep but they both stayed on the phone for another half an hour before Seokjin realized that Namjoon could drift off any second.

Seokjin started speaking in a low and calming voice and within minutes he was sure Namjoon was already half way asleep. He said goodnight and Namjoon murmured something which sounded a lot like goodnight before they hung up.

Seokjin had a smile on his face for the rest of the night. They had a dumb conversation, talked about nothing specific but it felt nice and good. He drifted off to sleep soon after.

Hoseok when pushed outside pressed his ear to the door to hear something but there was nothing. Texting hardly gave you any noise till it’s the other kind.

He started walking towards Taehyung’s room when he saw Yoongi laid down on the sofa, his blanket was down on the floor.

Hoseok smiled to himself and walked towards the sofa, picked the blanket and tucked Yoongi. While he was tucking Yoongi his hand accidently brushed Yoongi’s jaw and Hoseok could confirm, that jaw only looks sharp but is really soft.

Yoongi wiggled a little but went back to sleep, Hoseok sat on the floor. He just couldn’t go back now. He sat there as he watched a sleeping Yoongi.

“Why… you here?” Yoongi asked in a sleepy voice.

“I thought you’re sleeping,” Hoseok said but didn’t make a move to leave.

“No one lets me,” Yoongi mumbled.

“I can leave if you want,” Hoseok said in a soft voice. Didn’t wanted to wake Yoongi up completely.

“Stay,” Yoongi said softly and buried his face in the blanket.

“I’ll stay,” Hoseok said and smiled.

“They only say it but don’t mean it,” was what Hoseok understood Yoongi said. He didn’t ask more, he stayed quiet and sat there for as long as he could. Then he saw Taehyung leave Jeongguk’s room and walked into his own. Hoseok stayed.

Jeongguk walked out and told Hoseok that he should get some rest and that he’ll take care of Yoongi. Hoseok wanted to help but he just nodded and went where Taehyung was.

Once he entered he asked Taehyung if everything was okay and Taehyung stayed quiet.

Taehyung kept recalling the conversation in his head. He just wanted to talk to Jeongguk, ask him what happened.

When Yoongi left the room, Taehyung closed the door for privacy. Jeongguk still acted like he was busy.

Taehyung went to the bed and sat on the exact same place he sat last night.

“Are you angry?” Taehyung asked.

“I’m busy,” Jeongguk said.

Taehyung wasn’t here for this and he wasn’t going to wait around. He stood up and started walking towards the door, “Let me know when you’re free so we can talk.”

“You came here to say something,” Jeongguk said from behind. He closed the laptop and was now seated on the chair with his arm crossed.

“I came here to talk,” Taehyung corrected him.

“Then talk.”

“What’s with you?” Taehyung got straight to the point.

“I didn’t know you have a boyfriend,” Jeongguk replied straight away.

“And that changes anything because?” Taehyung asked and sat back on the bed.

“It doesn’t, I just don’t like being lied to. Specially when I asked you to tell me the truth.”

“You never asked if I had a boyfriend.”

“I never asked if you had friends either, you told me all about your whole crew for hours yesterday and you didn’t mention him once.”

“His name is Hyu,” Taehyung said. “And I never lied to you, I just never told you the whole truth.”

“Don’t start this bullshit with me,” Jeongguk sounded pissed and Taehyung had never seen him this way.

“We’re not dating, it’s complicated.” Taehyung wanted to explain but it was hard enough for him to understand let alone explain it to anyone else.

“He is your boyfriend though? You are committed to him, right?” Jeongguk asked. His arms still folded.

“That’s true but, it’s not like that.”

“Explain because I call bullshit,” Jeongguk raised his voice with every word.

“That’s hard to explain, you’ll not understand.”

“Is it because you wanna call him your boyfriend and still sleep around with others?” Jeongguk himself knew he shouldn’t have said that but he did it anyway.

“Stop making assumptions-”

“I don’t care, Taehyung.” Jeongguk aggressively rubbed his face. He looked tired. “I don’t care what you do or who you sleep around with. I just want you to be honest with me if you want me to catch the guy behind it all.”

“Is it really all about me not telling you about him,” Taehyung asked.

“Yes,” Jeongguk replied.

Their conversation was almost dead, Taehyung knew it. Taehyung wanted to say a lot of things, wanted to explain a lot of things but he wasn’t sure if Jeongguk wanted to heard him out.

“So, it’s not about me having a boyfriend?” Taehyung looked down as he asked.

“It’s not.” Jeongguk didn’t add anything and Taehyung didn’t move either. He wanted for Jeongguk to say something else but as the time passed Taehyung got up to leave, when he reached the door Jeongguk said, “You’re a client.”

For a second Taehyung could sense hurt and desperation in Jeongguk’s voice.

“Jeongguk,” Taehyung said his name very softly. Made sure he had Jeongguk’s attention.

“As much as you want me to be honest to you, I want you to be honest with me as well. So, when I ask if it’s about me having a boyfriend or not, I don’t want you to lie to me.” With that Taehyung walked out.

He wasn’t sure where they stood now, if they were on each other’s good books or they were just people involved in a mess.

Taehyung wasn’t sure what he wanted from Jeongguk but this useless fight over a guy what’s what he expected. There’s something about Jeongguk that draws Taehyung towards him but Taehyung is too afraid to do anything or to say anything.

The whole thing with Hyu is a mess in itself. It’s hard for Taehyung to explain it to Jeongguk but he wanted to. He wanted Jeongguk to know. He wanted Jeongguk to understand that there’s no love in Taehyung’s heart for Hyu and that in no way was he using Hyu. Taehyung never really thought Hyu loved him as well. They were just in this because Taehyung was stupid and Hyu was clever.

Maybe Jeongguk and him will sit down and talk about it one day and he hopes that the day comes soon. He couldn’t go on fighting with Jeongguk. He hated the feeling. His mood had been so low the whole day since Jeongguk walked out of his room this afternoon.

They all laid down in bed. Taehyung remembered to keep the door of his room open. Hoseok and Jimin were asleep and Taehyung adjusted himself so he could peek into Jeongguk’s room.

The light in Jeongguk’s room was still on. He was still pacing around the room. Taehyung saw Jeongguk in front of the switchboard, he stood there for a while. He didn’t turn the lights off. His back was towards Taehyung that’s why Taehyung couldn’t tell what his expression were like. Then Jeongguk turned. Taehyung could swear that their eyes locked and the blood rushed to Taehyung’s neck and cheeks. But it was impossible. There was complete darkness in Taehyung’s room which made it impossible for Jeongguk to see Taehyung.

But Taehyung felt that look. He remained froze till Jeongguk turned and switched off the lights. Hyu had never made his heart race like that and all Jeongguk did was look into a dark room.

Taehyung, for his own personal reasons, wanted Jeongguk to know the truth about Hyu. Maybe tomorrow, he will.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the late update. i was just really busy with personal life.  
> Do let me know what you think of this chapter and the characters.  
> Thank you!


	4. Chapter 4

 

The next few days happened like this: Jeongguk walked out of every room Taehyung was in. Taehyung tried to get a hold of Jeongguk multiple times but Jeongguk would make an excuse and leave before Taehyung could utter a word. Taehyung got frustrated and his stubbornness got the best of him. He stopped trying. He wouldn’t go out of his way to talk to Jeongguk.

To Jeongguk’s amusement the whole thing affected him. His job was to make sure Taehyung was okay and to catch that culprit and Taehyung was safe, but something in Jeongguk just doesn’t sit well. It wasn’t like he himself showed any interest in talking to Taehyung but being ignored wasn’t on his agenda.

“I’ll be going home this Christmas,” Jeongguk announced unexpectedly at lunch a few days later. Christmas was in three days and even though it wasn’t his original plan but he went with it.

“When will you be leaving?” Seokjin asked. Taehyung showed no interest in the topic, stuffed his mouth with food instead. Yoongi looked unbothered as well, that left Seokjin to show all the emotions.

“A day before Christmas,” Jeongguk replied.

“That’s like, day after tomorrow. So, who’ll be here then?” Seokjin asked.

“Yoongi,” Jeongguk said. Throughout the whole conversation he didn’t look up once. Kept chewing on his food while he answered Seokjin.

“Where’s your home?” Seokjin asked and Jeongguk hesitated for a second. He wasn’t sure if he wanted them to know but it wasn’t anything to hide and moreover Seokjin has been nothing but nice to him since the day they arrived.

“Buasn.”

“Really?” Seokjin looked surprised and that was the first time Taehyung looked up as well. His expression was unreadable.

“Yeah, why?”

“Jimin is from Busan as well, he’s leaving tomorrow, why don’t you go with him?” Seokjin said and Taehyung looked at Seokjin.

“He is?”

“Yeah, and he hates traveling alone and you’ll make a new friend as well. Go with him, I’ll give him a call as well. How are you going? Train?” Seokjin asked.

“I was planning on driving,” Jeongguk said paused for a second, then he looked down and said in the lowest voice possible, “I want to clear my head.”

“He’ll love it, I’ll call him,” Seokjin said and moved away from the table and into his room. Yoongi was done eating as well and he picked up his bowl to put it in the sink. This left Taehyung and Jeongguk alone on the table.

They stayed quiet for a minute, just the voice of chewing in the air.

“At what time are you off?” Taehyung asked, this was the first time Taehyung talked to him in over two days.

“I was thinking of leaving early morning to avoid traffic,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung gave him a nod.

The conversation ended then and there.

Seokjin came back and talked Jeongguk’s ear out over what they should do while driving and what routes to take. Taehyung found his escape and went to his room.

His chest felt heavy and he didn’t know why? It shouldn’t be like that. He knew he acted like a stubborn kid but he wanted to make things right. He knew his only chance to talk to Jeongguk was tonight.

Jimin called him later that day to let him that he’ll be staying over as they need to leave early morning and Taehyung was glad, he wanted someone to be there with him for the night.

When the night came so did Taehyung’s anxiousness. He wanted to get Jeongguk alone and wanted to make sure that Jeongguk actually pay attention to what he had to say. The whole during, all Taehyung did was stare at Jeongguk in hopes that he would look at him but that didn’t happen. Jeongguk was too busy with Jimin who was very excited about their trip.

Once the dinner was over, Jeongguk very politely stood up and started walking outside.

“Where are you going?” Seokjin asked when he noticed.

“Out. For a run, maybe.” And Seokjin just gave him a nod. Jimin went to Taehyung’s room and Yoongi went to clean up the dishes.

Taehyung hated running, hated anything that had to do with him walking faster than he does now but he was willing to do it for Jeongguk. When he walked outside, he was ready to run but saw that Jeongguk just walking around. Taehyung took a deep breath and walked towards him.

“Can we talk?” Taehyung asked.

Jeongguk didn’t look at him, he just gave a simple nod. Taehyung hated it.

“It’s about the boy the other day.”

“You don’t have to explain anything to me, it’s none of my business.”

“As someone who’s here to protect me, I think it is your business.”

Jeongguk stayed quiet at that. Taehyung was right about it.

“I don’t have feelings for him,” Taehyung said. They weren’t walking anymore. Just stood side by side with their head held low.

“He’s your boyfriend.”

“That… that part is true,” Taehyung said. He hated it. “But it’s more complicated than that.”

“Let me ask you something,” Jeongguk said and turned towards Taehyung. For a second, Taehyung wanted Jeongguk to be quiet and for them just to be there for each other. For a second, Taehyung thought of reaching out and hold him.

“Just reply with a yes or no, don’t explain. Please.” Taehyung gave him a nod at that.

“Are you guys committed to each other? In the sense that you can’t date anyone else and he can’t date anyone else?” Jeongguk asked and Taehyung stayed quiet for a minute too long.

“Yes,” Taehyung replied. He wanted to explain more but Jeongguk was already on his other question.

“Did you guys plan on being boyfriends?” Jeongguk asked but spoke again, “Let me rephrase it, did any one of you ask any one of you to be their boyfriend and the other one said yes?”

Taehyung hated it, “Yes,” he replied.

Jeongguk then looked up at Taehyung, straight into his eyes. They stood close, a little too close for them to just be two people talking.

“Then I don’t think there’s more for us to talk about it. As someone who’s here to protect you, this much information is enough.” Jeongguk just turned around and walked away.

Taehyung stood there, he couldn’t move. His chest still felt heavy. This wasn’t how he planned the conversation to go. It got more complicated than the last time.

Taehyung wanted to cry and he couldn’t pin point why? He wasn’t supposed to feel like that. Was he?

 

Taehyung woke up at four am to Jimin just running around the room repacking his stuff. He shuffled him bed a little and asked what Jimin was doing.

“We’re leaving in five minutes, Jeongguk is already outside. I can’t find my charger.”

“You guys are leaving now?” Taehyung stood up panicked. He thought they were leaving at seven or something.

“Help me find my charger. I didn’t want to wake you up, you were shuffling a lot so I thought you didn’t get much sleep and I wanted to let you rest.”

“Take Seokjin’s charger, he’ll not notice.” Taehyung was already out the door when he said that.

He wore the slippers in a hurry and bolted outside. There it was just Jeongguk by the car and he imagined the rest were either asleep or already said their byes.

“So, you were just gonna leave like that?” Taehyung almost yelled in frustration. He wasn’t sure why he was so angry.

“Taehyung, go back inside, you’ll catch a cold,” Jeongguk said and walked towards Taehyung. That was the first time Taehyung realized that he forgot to grab a coat. He was in his pajama and shirt and it was freezing outside.

“I don’t even get a goodbye?” Taehyung asked ignoring Jeongguk’s command.

“I said go back inside because you freeze.”

“And I said, don’t tell me what to do and just reply to my question.”

Jeongguk stayed still, his eyes heavy on Taehyung’s. Taehyung crossed his arms in a defensive manner and Jeongguk just shook his head. Jeongguk started taking off his coat and walked towards Taehyung, who refused to let his guard down.

Jeongguk swing the coat around him and adjusted it on his shoulders, held the collars firmly and tapped it twice before he took a step back.

“You’ll get cold,” Jeongguk said again.

“When will you be back?” Taehyung asked again.

“First week of Jan, I guess. Yoongi will be here, if you need help, he’ll be here.” Jeongguk assured him.

Taehyung wanted to mention that his birthday was soon. But he stayed quiet.

Jimin walked out right then and hugged Taehyung tight. “I’ll miss you so much. I’ll facetime every day. My mom already messaged me asking me to bring you along. They miss you as well. I’ll see you soon, okay. I’ll be back in a couple of days. Can’t miss the big day.” Jimin pulled out from the hug and kissed Taehyung’s cheeks. Squeezed his shoulders again before he walked towards the car and put his luggage in.

Jeongguk just stood there and kept his eyes on Taehyung and this time Taehyung didn’t look away. They stood there for a moment, both of them stayed quiet. Just kept looking. Taehyung thought he saw regret on Jeongguk’s face for a second but he could be wrong.

“Come on, let’s go,” Jimin yelled from inside the car and Jeongguk turned towards the car.

“Drive safe,” Taehyung said as he watched Jeongguk leave.

“Take care of yourself,” was what Jeongguk replied instead.

Once the car was out of sight, Taehyung hugged the coat tightly around his body. It still smelled like Jeongguk. He hated it.

For Taehyung the whole day went by him staying in his room and avoiding people. He refused to see anyone, Seokjin would come and feed him and they would talk a little but Seokjin understood so he didn’t do anything Taehyung wouldn’t want him to. Yoongi never disturbed. He did his job like a professional he was.

As much as Yoongi hated to admit it, he had been very distracted the last couple of days. Ninety percent of it had to do with a particular heart-shaped lip boy and the rest ten percent because of how stupid Taehyung and Jeongguk are acting.

Since the night of Hoseok tucking Yoongi in, they haven’t talked. They have crossed path a few times and Hoseok has tried making small talks but Yoongi had been busy. He would catch a glimpse of the boy with a loud laugh whenever he was walking in or out of the house to run errands.

Last few days Hoseok hasn’t been around, Yoongi don’t want to admit that he missed the presence but he got used to the chattering in the house. It seemed empty without all of them here.

Yoongi had thought a lot about it, why he found himself looking for Hoseok whenever he heard an extra voice in the house. Maybe it had to do with the way Hoseok looks at him, the way Hoseok’s cheeks lift up when they make eye contact. Maybe it had to do with the fact that Yoongi could see Hoseok searching for him, Yoongi could see Hoseok looking around before his eyes would land on Yoongi and it always felt like he found what he was looking for. Or maybe it’s just the irrational part of his brain, which made him believe those things are happening when Hoseok was just being nice.

Maybe it was the attention. It wasn’t like Yoongi wasn’t approached by people but it happened once in a blue moon. His job made it impossible for him to meet new people, he hated going out, he would rather go out for drinks and get back home. It’s been ages since someone showed any interest him, so maybe it was just that. Maybe.

He remembered the last time he saw Hoseok, he was asked how he was holding up. That question caught him off guard. Maybe Hoseok just wanted to have a conversation but Yoongi wasn’t sure what it was, he replied with a simple ‘good’ and left. He still regretted it.

The day of Christmas, the house was quiet. Yoongi wanted to take an off as well, he wasn’t supposed to be working today, Jeongguk was. But he was stuck on the house. He went out to check all cameras were working, made sure to talk to Seokjin to take more precaution as it’s a holiday season and the chances of the culprit showing up was high.

They sat down for lunch, Taehyung, Seokjin and Yoongi. Yoongi didn’t bother with small talks, kept his mouth full with food.

“I’m sorry you have to work during the holiday,” Taehyung said to Yoongi and Yoongi just gave him a small nod. Yoongi thought for a second that maybe he seemed a little rude. Maybe he should just try and make conversation as well.

“Jeongguk was supposed to stay today, it was supposed to be my off,” Yoongi said, not sure if it was the right thing to start a conversation with.

“Then why did he leave?” Seokjin asked.

“Don’t know, he hasn’t taken an off since he started working with us. This is literally his first off. Majority of the times Namjoon had to give him special vacation because Jeongguk’s mom will call Namjoon and will ask him to send Jeongguk home.”

“He has never taken an off?” Taehyung asked. His voice sounded off so Yoongi took a little time before he answered.

“I mean, it’s not like he doesn’t want to,” He never wanted to, “It’s more like, he never got the chance.” Yoongi lied.

“I’m sorry,” Taehyung said again and this time Yoongi wasn’t sure what he was sorry for, he wasn’t going to ask either. “You deserve an off. Does your family lives nearby?”

“Not really but I wasn’t planning on going home, I would just have gone to my apartment.”

Taehyung stayed quiet, Yoongi could see that his words affected Taehyung but he wasn’t sure what to say next. They all had their lunch in silence.

After the lunch and when Seokjin was done with dishes Taehyung approached him.

“Do you have a minute?” Taehyung asked.

“I’ll slap your head off if you ever are so formal with me,” Seokjin said. Taehyung laughed, his heart felt light again.

“I’ve just been stressed,” Taehyung said as they started walking towards Seokjin’s room.

“I can tell but stop stressing over Jeongguk, I am sure he just needs some space,” Seokjin assured him.

“And I can respect that,” Taehyung said in a way made it look like he was trying to convince himself.

“What do you wanna talk about?” Seokjin said as he laid down on his bed.

“I feel bad for Yoongi, he shouldn’t be here.”

“There’s nothing we can do now, it’s okay. It doesn’t look like he minds so much,” Seokjin tried assuring him again. Seokjin just wanted Taehyung to take it easy on himself, he has a lot doing on in his mind and Seokjin didn’t wanted Yoongi to be one of them.

“Yeah but still, it upsets me. So, I called Namjoon,” Taehyung smiled.

That caught Seokjin’s full attention and he sat straight. “You called Namjoon?” Seokjin repeated.

“Someone likes it?” Taehyung teased and pushed Seokjin’s shoulder.

“Don’t you start with me,” Seokjin increased his voice. “Why would you call him?”

“I wanted to give Yoongi the day off so, I called Namjoon, asked him if Yoongi can go home for today but he said that’s risky and I shouldn’t be left alone.” Taehyung pouted and crossed his arms.

“I even told him you’ll be here but I guess he just don’t trust you,” Taehyung said in a teasing manner.

“I’m not your bodyguard, he shouldn’t trust me with this,” Seokjin defended Namjoon unconsciously.

“I’ve seen that you’re on your phone a lot lately,” Taehyung smiled mischievously.

“I’m not doing this right now,” Seokjin said and laid down in his bed again, covered his face with the sheets. He could feel his ears turning red.

“Anyway, I told Namjoon that I feel bad for keeping Yoongi here, considering it’s Christmas and he told me Yoongi isn’t big on festivals. I told his it’s still a holiday and I want Yoongi to be home,” Taehyung said and paused for a second. When he received no response from Seokjin, he continued, “Namjoon offered to come over.”

Now, things were interesting. Taehyung wanted to laugh. Wanted to look at Seokjin’s face but Seokjin had gripped the sheets tightly.

“He’s coming over now?” Seokjin asked in a low voice.

“I haven’t confirmed anything yet, I told him I need to talk to you first. He said he’ll only be able to make it after eight tonight and I told him I’ll let him know soon. So, what do you say?” Taehyung asked.

“You want Yoongi to go, so, I don’t think we have a choice,” Seokjin said from under his sheet.

“Just say you want him here and I’ll leave,” Taehyung laughed and walked out Seokjin’s room. He went straight to Yoongi and told him he could leave when Namjoon arrives. Yoongi kept quiet and gave him a small thanks.

For Seokjin, the rest of the day moved with the snail’s speed. Every minute felt like a century. He was anxious.

Things between him and Namjoon aren’t perfect but that’s just because of Namjoon’s job. Since the day they talked on the phone, they deceived to talk again but would never get the time to do so. Namjoon would run from one meeting to another and from one client to another, Seokjin was afraid to call. He wanted Namjoon to do his job right and that’s why he only left him messages. Seokjin would always, always be cooking whenever Namjoon called. Their time never matches and when the night comes, one or the other thing would occupy someone and no calls would be made.

Seokjin believed it was a miracle that they talked the first time they did.

He changed at least six times before he concluded that anything would work on him. He decided to just put on a simple white t-shirt with blue ripped jeans. The t-shirt was deep cut though. When he walked out of the room it was already eight and there was no sign of Namjoon.

“Someone dressed to impress,” Taehyung teased when he looked at Seokjin.

“A man can look great whenever he wants to and I don’t even have to try,” Seokjin replied.

Before Taehyung could reply to that, Yoongi walked in with Namjoon. Namjoon in a suit. Namjoon in a black sleek suit and the smile he carries.

Seokjin couldn’t move from his spot. For all the confidence he carries with himself, this wasn’t how he expected to behave.

“Namjoon, thank you for coming over. I really hope i didn’t kill any of your plans for the night.” Taehyung walked ahead and greeted him.

“It’s no problem, honestly. I’m happy to be here,” Namjoon said with a smile and then he looked a Seokjin. Taehyung just pressed his lips together and tried his best not to laugh.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then, don’t leave before I’m here,” Yoongi said to Namjoon and made his way to his room. He came back with a small bag and said his goodbyes.

“Stay for dinner,” Seokjin offered.

“I’m good, thank you. I’ll be off then,” Yoongi said.

“What’s your plan for the night?” Namjoon asked.

“Might go to a pub near my place and have a drink, then to bed,” Yoongi replied. He wasn’t big on celebrations.

“Ah, hope you enjoy,” Taehyung said and they all sat down for dinner. Except for Yoongi, who was about to leave when Namjoon asked if he could give him a glass of water.

“How’s Hoseok now?” Seokjin asked Taehyung while Yoongi was getting water.

“I wanna say better but you know how he is. He don’t want us to be sad. I feel so bad that he couldn’t go home, he hates staying alone during festivals and it scares him,” Taehyung said.

“I offered him to come here but he refused, said he wanted to stay home. Stupid, should just have been here with us. I even asked if we can join him and he said no to that as well. He said his place is too small for all of us to be there.” Seokjin added.

Yoongi came back with the glass of water and gave it Namjoon. Said his goodbyes again and left.

Once the dinner Taehyung stood up, about to leave. “Don’t have sex tonight when I’m in the same house,” Taehyung said.

Namjoon coughed, almost choked up on his water.

“Just because you ain’t getting any action doesn’t mean no one else should either,” Seokjin replied. He didn’t dare look at Namjoon who coughed some more. Seokjin just hoped that Namjoon got the sarcasm and wasn’t thinking too much.

Taehyung just laughed and went straight to his room. He was too tired and he hadn’t slept much last night. When he laid down, for a second, he thought of messaging Jeongguk but he wasn’t sure what to say. He opened his messages and stared at them for a minute, there were few messages from his parents and his friends but he wasn’t in a mood to reply to any of them. He closed his phone and tossed and turned till he fell asleep.

When Seokjin and Namjoon were done with dinner Namjoon said he would check all the locks. Seokjin went ahead to do the dishes in the meantime. Once, they both were done, Namjoon stood by the kitchen and watched Seokjin.

“Are you just gonna stan and stare or help me?” Seokjin asked without turning.

“You’re already done,” Namjoon mentioned with a smile.

Seokjin whipped his hands dry and turned towards Namjoon.

“Hey,” Namjoon said lightly and it made goosebumps appear on Seokjin’s skin.

“Hi,” Seokjin replied shyly. They both were smiling and they both had no intention to start talking anytime soon.

After a while Namjoon asked, “Which one’s my room?” and Seokjin took him to Yoongi and Jeongguk’s room.

“So, I’ll be sleeping here?” Namjoon asked as he kept his bag on side table.

“Yes, do you have other plans?” Seokjin teased.

“Can you give me a second, I’ll just change. I’ve been in the suit since morning and I just really need to wear something comfortable,” Namjoon said and started taking out his clothes from his bag.

“Sure, yeah,” Seokjin replied in a hurry. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning then, sleep well and if you-”

“No, no, wait,” Namjoon said in panic.

“I don’t want you to leave,” Namjoon said as he cut off Seokjin.

“What?” Seokjin wasn’t sure if he heard him right. Wasn’t Namjoon the one who hinted that he should leave?

“I’ll change in the bathroom quickly and you can stay here for a while, I mean, if you want to, of course. Otherwise, sure, yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Namjoon said hurriedly.

“You want me to stay?” Seokjin asked.

“Yes.” Namjoon wanted to add a few more things but he thought that would do. Without anymore words, he went to the bathroom to change and when he came back, Seokjin was still there. The atmosphere in the room was different though. The curtains were off and so were the lights. The only light inside the room was of the moon.

It was bright enough, it wasn’t dark at all. The windows were wide, Seokjin pulled out some candles as well.

“Taehyung has to keep his room’s door open while sleeping and if there’s so much light coming out, I don’t think he’ll sleep well. He hasn’t slept well in a while, so I hope you don’t mind,” Seokjin said as he was lighting the candles.

“No, not at all,” Namjoon replied.

They stayed quiet for a while, once Seokjin was done with the candles, he sat on a chair. Namjoon offered him the bed but Seokjin thought that would be too intimate.

“Oh come on, I’ll be on this side and you can stay on that side,” Namjoon said and Seokjin started moving. He placed the pillow on his lap and sat down looking at Namjoon. “I hope you can resist all this,” Seokjin said and waved a hand up and down his body.

Namjoon let out a laugh, “I’ll try my best.”

Things weren’t as awkward as Seokjin anticipated. Conversation flowed easily. They never touched the ‘us’ topic but covered the rest.

“I didn’t think I’ll see you again so soon,” Namjoon said honestly. Namjoon was laid down on the bed, he had a blanket which went up to his waist and Seokjin tried hard not to look at his chest, which looked really defined. Maybe it’s because of the work he does.

“Someone sounds eager,” Seokjin teased with a smile.

“What if someone is?” Namjoon asked instead. He placed both his hands behind his head which gave his biceps a lot of volume. Seokjin wasn’t sure if that’s Namjoon’s plan but he wasn’t going to be distracted by it.

“Then that someone should drop by often,” Seokjin said instead and it made Namjoon laugh.

“This whole month has just been so busy,” Namjoon said.

“It’s work, the busy it is the better, right?” Seokjin smiled and started playing with the edge of the pillow.

“Yeah, but now I don’t even have Yoongi with me. I kinda miss the guys in the office but it’s good for business that they’re on the field.”

“If you miss them so much, you should come by for lunch or dinner,” Seokjin said. They were joking at this point. Seokjin knew he couldn’t ask Namjoon for that. Work comes first.

“And when they ask me why I can’t make it to the meetings, I should just say that Seokjin said I should drop by the house more.”

“That should work, my name is that powerful,” Seokjin said and it made Namjoon laugh real loud. Namjoon’s laugh made Seokjin laugh as well.

“With the way things were, I thought you kinda have started to ignore me,” Seokjin said, it wasn’t the whole truth but it wasn’t a lie as well. Seokjin never thought he was being ignored because he understood the type of work Namjoon does but still there have been times when he has wondered if maybe he was forcing himself onto him.

“Seokjin, Please. I would never. I even used to take bathroom breaks to reply to you,” Namjoon said.

“You replied me from the bathroom?”

“Would you rather not have a reply at all?” Namjoon asked instead.

“The things you do for me,” Seokjin said in a teasing manner, “Cute.”

Namjoon gave him the biggest smile, he looked shy as well.

“Your dimples are cute as well,” Seokjin found him saying.

“Ah, really?” Namjoon smiled and displayed his dimples for Seokjin. “What else do you find cute?” Namjoon asked.

Seokjin was a little surprised over how Namjoon didn’t react negatively to the word ‘cute’, whereas most men he has met, they wouldn’t want to associate themselves with that word.

“Your nose,” Seokjin said and Namjoon laughed again.

“Thank you,” Namjoon said after a while. “And not just for the compliments but for your company. I’ve just been a bit stressed with work and stuff and I just realized that it been a long time since I sat and actually had a conversation with someone which had nothing to do with business.”

Seokjin just gave him a smile. Namjoon has yawned exactly twelve times since they entered the room. Seokjin has noticed that, he didn’t want to keep him up for long. Seokjin understood the sentiments in Namjoon’s words. He gave him a smile again.

“You should get some rest,” Seokjin said and started getting up from the bed when he felt Namjoon’s hand on his wrist.

“Stay a little longer,” Namjoon said with a yawn and it made Seokjin smile with fondness.

“You’ll fall asleep any minute,” Seokjin said but Namjoon didn’t let go of his wrist. Seokjin put hand on Namjoon’s hand tried getting his wrist out of it. Namjoon’s hands were really soft.

“Please, stay with me,” Namjoon mumbled.

“Namjoon, I’ll be here in the morning, you should sleep,” Seokjin said very softly. Namjoon’s eyes were still open but they looked heavy with sleep. “I promise,” Seokjin added.

“Okay, goodnight, Seokjin.”

Seokjin stood up and placed the pillow on a side, he then walked towards Namjoon’s side and tucked him in. Namjoon looked really soft, really small in that very moment. Seokjin smiled again. He did the curtains so there’s darkness in the room and the he blew out all the candles. He went back to Namjoon’s side. Namjoon’s eyes were still open.

“Sleep,” Seokjin said with a small laugh.

“I’ll, thank you again,” Namjoon said in the softest voice possible. Maybe it was just the sleep.

Seokjin leaned down and kissed Namjoon’s forehead. “Goodnight, Namjoon.”

Namjoon finally closed his eyes, he had a smile on his face and Seokjin was happy to cause it.

When Yoongi left Taehyung’s place he had a plan. The plan consisted of him getting drunk and staying home. There was a small pub near his place and he was very familiar with the owner. Not friends but acquaintances. Everything was planned. But then how he found himself standing in front of Hoseok’s main door, he had no idea about it.

He left Taehyung’s with the sole purpose of making it to his apartment but he just couldn’t escape the thought of Hoseok being alone on a festival.

He never planned on visiting Hoseok but there he was, outside Hoseok’s house. Yoongi hesitated before he rang the door-bell. He still debated if he should just leave. He still had no idea what he would say when Hoseok would ask him questions of why he was here.

Yoongi could hear footsteps but it still took a while for Hoseok to appear on the door. Hoseok looked as surprised as Yoongi imagined. His lips formed an ‘o’ and words failed him.

“Y-Yoongi?” Hoseok said in disbelief. He stood at the door and by Hoseok’s expression it was clear that he wasn’t going to invite Yoongi in. Yoongi put his hand up and pushed the plastic bag which contained fried chicken, towards Hoseok.

“Here, have this,” Yoongi said and Hoseok took the bag unconsciously. Yoongi then turned to leave. His work here was done.

“Are you leaving?” Hoseok asked the obvious.

Yoongi just turned to look at him, wasn’t sure if any answer was required.

“You got so much, have some of it with me,” Hoseok offered before he even checked the bag. Yoongi could hear the desperation in Hoseok’s voice so he just gave him a nod and Hoseok let him enter.

It was true, Hoseok’s apartment was small. The kitchen started in the living room and there was just one more room on the opposite side. It looked small but felt like Hoseok’s. The apartment was clean, Hoseok must have been on his sofa before he opened the door because there were multiple blankets on the sofa with some cushions. The tv was on and some show or movie, Yoongi has never heard of, was playing.

“Please, make yourself comfortable, I’ll be there in a second and do you need anything to drink? I only have sprite, if you need something else, I can get it from the market, it’s not far away.” Hoseok was rambling and for some reason Yoongi just found it adorable, he just smiled and asked Hoseok to just get anything that he wanted.

Yoongi sat on one corner of the sofa, it wasn’t big but it was spacious enough for two, could fit three if forced.

Hoseok came back from the kitchen and he had a bowl filled with the fired chicken Yoongi brought, he got both of them sprite as well and Yoongi wouldn’t complain.

“I love fried chicken,” Hoseok said and Yoongi just nodded.

It was obvious that Hoseok wanted to asked something but he reframed himself. Maybe because he didn’t want Yoongi to feel uncomfortable.

“I have all of Taehyung’s friends addresses memorized.” Yoongi lied. It wasn’t like he digged Hoseok’s address but he has Jimin and Hoseok’s addresses memorized as they are Taehyung’s closest friends.

“Taehyung sent you?” Hoseok asked curiously. They both were on the sofa now. Hoseok placed the blanket on Yoongi’s legs. Yoongi wasn’t cold at all but he didn’t mind.

“No,” Yoongi replied.

“You came on your own?” Hoseok asked and this time he looked up at Yoongi.

“Why didn’t you go home for the festival?” Yoongi asked instead of replying to Hoseok.

“I planned on going but then the academy I work at, they called and I had to go, there’s this huge festival we’re working for and there have been a lot of changes and I couldn’t say no. But they called a few hours ago and told me that the practice for today has been cancelled. So, I had no other choice to just stay home. I tried looking for tickets but everything is booked,” Hoseok replied.

The light in the apartment was low. There was a small bulb on the side of the wall, the curtains were open so the light could enter and then there was the light from the TV. Otherwise, it was darker than what Yoongi anticipated.

Yoongi wanted to ask Hosoek more about what he does but he wasn’t sure if that would be too much, they ate in silence with the television’s noise in the background. Once they were done, Hoseok collected all the plates and placed it in the sink and this time when he sat back on the sofa he sat closer to Yoongi.

They weren’t really close but their knees were touching. Yoongi could feel his cheeks going warm. Yoongi could feel the blush that formed on his neck. He didn’t want to move his leg, he liked the warmth for some reason.

“I asked Taehyung not to be concerned, he wanted to come over himself, even asked if I would wanna come over as well. I didn’t want to sulk in front of them. Taehyung is already stressed with the whole Jeongguk and his boyfriend thing, I didn’t want to add on to the stress.”

Yoongi made a mental note to ask Jeongguk about the boyfriend thing. He didn’t want to look dumb in front of Hoseok so he just gave him a nod. This time around, things were different when they talked. Yoongi was facing Hoseok, Yoongi’s one leg was on the sofa and the other hanged low. His back rested on the arm of the sofa. Hoseok was somewhat in the similar position but his legs were crossed on the sofa. They both sat facing each other and they both were holding eye contact.

“Why didn’t you go home? To your family?” Hoseok asked when he was sure Yoongi wasn’t going to initiate a conversation.

“We’re not big on festivals. I visit home every once in six months and that’s about it for me. I don’t drop by for festival, we hardly celebrate any.”

“That’s the longest you have said in one go to me,” Hoseok mentioned and laughed. Yoongi realized he liked Hoseok’s laugh. It was loud, it was warm and it has its own ring to it.

“I’m sorry, I can be awkward in the starting,” Yoongi replied. He didn’t know how to let Hoseok know that it wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to him, it’s just he didn’t know how to.

“So, it’ll get better by the time?” Hoseok teased and smiled.

“If we talk regularly, then, yes.” Was he flirting? Was this considered flirting? Yoongi wanted to leave.

“Oh, that’s how it is.” Hoseok was clearly taken off-guard, he couldn’t come up with a better reply.

“I’m glad Taehyung sent you here,” Hoseok said after a while. They were still looking at each other.

“He didn’t,” Yoongi replied. If he said he overheard and decided himself, that would be embarrassing for him.

“Then,” Hoseok started and paused for a second, “Why are you here?”

Yoongi stayed quiet for a minute too long but Hoseok kept his eyes on his, he just wasn’t going to let it go. Yoongi thought of hundred things he could reply with. But he ended up with, “Because I wanted to.”

Hoseok repeated, just to make sure he heard Yoongi right, “Because you wanted to?”

“Yes,” Yoongi replied. Was this okay? Was this allowed? Did he make Hoseok feel uncomfortable? He should have warned him, he shouldn’t have been here at all. But something in Hoseok’s expression said that it was okay. That Yoongi was right where he was supposed to.

Hoseok’s eyes were heavy on Yoongi’s. It was like Hoseok could see his soul. Yoongi blinked a few times to not let the lightness in his head take over. It all felt so toxic in a really good way.

Yoongi tried telling himself that Hoseok was thankful towards Yoongi because he needed this company, not because Yoongi was here. That Hoseok was thankful because he needed someone to be there and not because he needed Yoongi. Hoseok would still have been thankful if it was Namjoon or Jeongguk.

But something about the way Hoseok was looking at Yoongi, said otherwise. It said that Hoseok is thankful that it was Yoongi. It said that if anyone could have visited, Hoseok wanted it to be Yoongi even if the chances were slim. It said that Hoseok would want Yoongi over another company.

Yoongi wasn’t sure how it happened but Hoseok’s face was inches away from his. They were close, very close. Yoongi felt Hoseok’s hot breath on his face, he felt the shaky intakes of breathes Hoseok took.

Yoongi hesitated and lifted his hand to cup Hoseok’s face. Hoseok was hovering over him, his face looked down on Yoongi’s. Yoongi angled his face so he could look Hoseok in the eyes. Hoseok’s skin was soft, really soft. Yoongi wanted to run his thumb over Hoseok’s cheeks but he resisted the urge.

Hoseok smiled with Yoongi’s hand on his cheeks. He leaned in with hesitation. When their lips touched, it wasn’t like how Hoseok has seen in the movies. It wasn’t sparks flying. Yes, there was rapid heartbeat and the warmth in the body but moreover it was grounding. Hoseok hesitated before he moved his lips. Pressed Yoongi’s bottom lips with his lips.

Yoongi closed his eyes and moved his head for a better angle. Hoseok’s lips were soft and smooth on his. Hoseok’s hands were soft and warm wrapped around his neck. Hoseok’s cheeks were burning with sensation under his hands. Then something Yoongi clicked.

Hoseok felt it and he leaned back to give them space to breathe. Hoseok looked at Yoongi with hopeful eyes but Yoongi avoided the eyes contact. Yoongi hurriedly gathered his things and he was out the door before Hoseok could even wrap his head around what was happening.

Hoseok sat on his sofa and he felt like shit. Was Yoongi not into it? Was it not what he expected? Was the kiss bad? Millions of things ran through Hoseok’s mind.

Hoseok reminded himself that Yoongi kissed him back. That Yoongi was the one who placed his hands on his cheeks. That Yoongi kissed him back. Maybe he changed his mind. He was allowed. But Hoseok honestly thought there was something between them. Maybe Hoseok was wrong.

 

Jeongguk was back from his trip to Busan. Halfway through his hometown, Jimin told him that Taehyung’s birthday was on the thirtieth. Jeongguk knew but in the mix of the whole boyfriend thing, the birthday slipped his mind.

Jimin asked him if they would be back before the birthday or if Jimin would have to go back home alone. Jeongguk said he would accompany him. Maybe the whole boyfriend mess has stretched for too long. It wasn’t required. It wasn’t any of Jeongguk’s business who Taehyung was exclusive with.

Jimin and Jeongguk made it back on the night of the twenty ninth. Jimin wouldn’t let Jeongguk get inside the house. They both were outside the house and inside Jeongguk’s car.

“Why are we here?” Jeongguk asked.

“Seokjin messaged me and asked me to wait here.”

“Why can’t I go in?”

“Because I can’t go in,” Jimin said as a matter of fact. Jeongguk just rolled his eyes.

Jeongguk liked Jimin. Jimin was free and fun to be around. Jeongguk felt more of his age when he was with Jimin than he was around anyone else he’s met yet.

Jeongguk saw Seokjin and a sleepy Yoongi walk towards the back of the car and enter inside.

“I thought you were coming back next week,” Seokjin whispered.

“Why are you whispering?” Jimin whispered back.

“Taehyung is sleeping,” Seokjin said.

“We’re in a car,” Jeongguk said loudly and Yoongi flicked his head.

“You talk that loud one more time, I swear.” Yoongi sounded cranky, like he hasn’t slept well in few nights.

“Why are we all here?” Yoongi asked annoyed.

“It’s Taehyung’s birthday in,” Seokjin looked at his watch as he spoke, “next thirty minutes.”

“So?” Yoongi asked.

“Don’t be insensitive,” Jimin snapped and this time Yoongi rolled his eyes.

“Well, I have a plan, so the plan is that no one wishes him right after twelve. I even switched off his phone so he won’t get any messages and I called Hoseok not to come tonight,” Seokjin started explaining. Right then Jeongguk noticed that the mention of Hoseok made Yoongi bow his head down. What happened while he was gone? Jeongguk wondered.

“No, please. I can’t do it. I love him, he’ll be so sad thinking none of us remember his birthday.” Jimin whined.

“It hurts my heart as well but here me out. His birthday always go with a same rhythm, he always knows everyone’s gonna surprise him at midnight and then we’ll make it grand by following his orders all day and then the party at the end of the night and it also starts the New Year. This time, I think we should do something different.”

“And what’s that?” Jimin asked.

“I was thinking that the whole day we keep ourselves busy and act like we forgot his birthday, let’s just not mention the date or day at all. So, the lawn behind the house which has been under renovation for ages, we’ll use that for the surprise. Namjoon said he’ll help and will send some guys over to help us out. I’ve already called all his friends and they’ll be here in the evening to set up the whole place as well. Taehyung never goes out towards that arear because he still thinks it’s not complete. And then once we’re all done, we throw all out love at his face.”

“I have a love-hate relationship with this plan, he already sounded so low when I called him today,” Jimin said with concern.

“It’ll be alright, believe me. I’ll take him out shopping tomorrow anyway. I told him I have a date,” Seokjin said.

“Namjoon asked?” Jeongguk was surprised.

“Did he say he’ll?” Seokjin asked back. The tip of Seokjin’s ear turned red and it made Jeongguk smile.

“I haven’t talked to him yet, but go-”

Before Jeongguk could finish his sentence Seokjin snacked his hand. “Don’t ask nonsense when you don’t know.”

It made Jimin laugh and Yoongi smile.

“Can I go back now?” Yoongi asked.

“Yes, I hope we’re all clear with the plan and Jimin can you stay for a second?” Seokjin said.

Jeongguk gave Seokjin the keys to his car. Asked him to make to sure to look the doors before the come back in.

Once Yoongi and Jeongguk were inside their room, Jeongguk went to clean up. When he returned he saw Yoongi was reading a book.

“Is everything okay?” Jeongguk asked.

“It’s a long story,” Yoongi said instead of lying.

“We have the whole night,” Jeongguk replied.

“You must be tried, you drove all day. We can talk tomorrow.”

“As long as you promise to talk.”

“Yes, now come to bed, we have a long day tomorrow.” Yoongi shuffled to make place for Jeongguk.

“I’ll go check on Taehyung first. His door is closed.”

“It’s been that way since you left,” Yoongi mentioned.

Jeongguk walked out of his room and towards the Taehyung’s room. He was about to open the door when he heard a noise from inside. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it sounded like footsteps. Maybe Taehyung was up.

The living room was pitch black, no light came form anywhere. Very quietly he pushed the doorknob and slightly opened the door to peek in.

Inside he saw a man who hovered over Taehyung’s sleeping figure. Jeongguk was about to enter the room when the man turned on his phone. The light from the phone made the man’s face visible and it took Jeongguk a few minutes to register that the face he saw was familiar. Way too familiar for his liking.

He saw the man click a picture of Taehyung, who was still asleep. The angle of the picture reminded him of the pictures Mr. Kim has sent him when they hired Jeongguk for this case. Jeongguk couldn’t move. He had been in the position where he had to catch a person and he has done it in a heartbeat but this one time, he just couldn’t move.

When he saw the phone’s power turned off, that was when Jeongguk move from the gate. He hid himself in a corner. It was already pitch black and there was no way anyone could see Jeongguk but he had to make sure anyway.

The door of Taehyung’s room opened and then he saw Jimin run towards the main door. He was out within a second.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry that the updates are taking so long. I've just been caught up with bazillion stuff.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> Please do let me know what you think of it. It always motivates me to write more and write faster hahaha.
> 
> Let me know what you think of the plot as well.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mention of gun and blood.

“Are you coming?” Jeongguk asked Yoongi on his way to their room.

“For what?”

“You didn’t read the messages?” Jeongguk wasn’t even surprised at this point.

“When you know I didn’t, why don’t you just tell me?” Yoongi was cranky than ever. Something truly was off but Jeongguk was in a rush. The meeting starts in five minutes.

“Jimin made a groupchat with everyone in it, except for Taehyung, and it’s for the birthday party. We have a whole meeting in five minutes to discuss the dos and don’ts.”

“How’s gonna be there?” Yoongi asked instead.

“Everyone.” With that Yoongi knew Hoseok would be there as well and he was sure he wasn’t ready to face Hoseok yet.

“I’ll pass, you and Namjoon discuss all the dos and don’ts and don’t let the kids make any decisions. Remember, we’re on duty. If anything goes wrong, it come to us and i’ll not compromise with security.”

“Okay okay, I’ll let them know,” Jeongguk said and walked towards the room. Yoongi still had to check all the security cameras that were going to be installed for the party, so he left the house.

When Jeongguk entered, everyone was already seated in a circle. Jimin in between of Hoseok and Seokjin. They had the laptop opened in front of them so that they could video chat with Namjoon. Namjoon had to attend everything so that he could be able to attend the party.

“Are we ready?” Jeongguk said as he approached the group. His eyes never left Jimin’s.

Jimin had been in the house since ten in the morning and it was now two in the afternoon. Jeongguk had kept all his attention on Jimin. Observed his behaviour and his interactions with everyone but nothing seemed out of place. There were times when Jimin would get scared if someone walked by and he was using his phone, he was cautious with his phone.

But Jeongguk or the Kims hadn’t received any threats yet. He just waited for Jimin to do one thing wrong so that he could interrogate him.

“Where’s Yoongi?” Seokjin asked and interrupted Jeongguk’s train of thoughts.

“Oh, yeah, he went to check the security and cameras. He said we can start without him,” Jeongguk said and went to sit beside Hoseok.

“Strange, Yoongi never misses any meetings,” Namjoon said from the screen and that was when everyone noticed that the call got connected and they all greeted each other.

“Where’s Taehyung?” Namjoon asked.

“He’s working in his room and asked me to lock the door as well, he’s safe,” Jeongguk said and emphasised on the word ‘safe’.

“Keep a check on him every few hours, today could be risky, people always love causing trouble on big days.”

Then they started the real meeting.

“How many people are coming?” Namjoon asked Jimin.

“Around two hundred to three, I guess and they’re bringing people with them-”

“Are you crazy?” Jeongguk said in surprise. There was no way three hundred random humans will be walking around Taehyung tonight.

“What? Taehyung has a lot of friends, it’ll be rude not to invite everyone.”

“Cut it down to fifty people. And who’s catering?” Namjoon continued.

“What? Fifty? Is this a joke? How are you supposed to have a part with just fifty people?” Jimin protested and Hoseok just laughed.

“Jimin, we have two options. One, you have a party with fifty people. Two, there’s no party. I can get a manpower to handle three hundred people overnight. Also, this is not a discussion. We set the ground rules here because we have to make sure that every single one of you is safe. Also, give me a list of all the fifty people, send me their contact details as well. In fact, hand it over to Jeongguk and he’ll take care of it from there. Are we clear on this?” Namjoon said very firmly, if you had no idea what kind of a person Namjoon was, it might seem rude, but they all have been with Namjoon for some time now. They know where all of this came from. Namjoon’s heart is at the right place.

“Okay, I’ll do it,” Jimin said in a sulky voice and Hoseok laughed and rubbed Jimin’s back.

“He’s bossy,” Seokjin said in a flirty manner and it got a smile on Namjoon’s face. He tried his best not to let it show but Seokjin noticed and so did the rest of them.

“I’ll just ask Seokjin to do the talking for me from now on,” Jimin said teasingly.

“And I would have agreed with Namjoon,” Seokjin said and winked at Namjoon which made Namjoon smile even harder.

“The amount of betrayal, go join the government then.”

“Anyway,” Namjoon said and cleared his throat. “Catering, who’s doing it?”

“So, the restaurant from where I’m learning, a bunch of my friends said they wanna do it, so, it’ll be just four to five people. No agency or company,” Seokjin said.

“Okay, just send the list of people with their contact numbers to me,” Namjoon said and hoped no one noticed how he asked Seokjin to send the details to him and not Jeongguk.

“Anything else you would want me to send you?” Seokjin teased and Namjoon pressed his lips to suppress a smile. Seokjin just looked satisfied.

“The party gets over at midnight,” Jeongguk said before they could end the conversation.

“What?” Hoseok almost yelled, “Now, this is truly crazy, fifty people were fine but midnight? Who ends a party a midnight?”

“It’s his birthday party, it lasts till it’s his birthday.”

“This is crazy, at least give us like two or three in the morning,” Jimin said and then paused for a second before he added, “Taehyung love parties.”

“One AM and that’s final,” Jeongguk said and walked out of the room and Hoseok followed him.

“Jeongguk, wait,” Hoseok yelled from behind.

“Hoseok, I really respect you, please I can’t do more-”

“No no, it’s not about that,” Hoseok interrupted and Jeongguk turned to face him.

“I was wondering, if you know where Yoongi is?” Hoseok asked quietly. He really wanted to talk to Yoongi, ask him what was going on.

“Oh, well, he’s busy today with the whole party stuff and he hasn’t been in a good mood lately, I’m sorry. I’ll let him know you asked for him.”

“No no no, no, you don’t have to, it’s fine. I was just asking. I’ll see you tonight then,” Hoseok said and walked out the front door. Yoongi hasn’t been in a good mood lately and Hoseok wondered if that was because of him. If everything that happened was a mistake? If Yoongi truly regretted it.

 

The party started at roughly eight at night, Jimin being Jimin made it all happen. Got everyone under the same roof and the whole birthday surprise for Taehyung worked but Jeongguk missed it. Jeongguk was too busy briefing the security team in the parking that he missed the way Taehyung lit up when Jimin showed him to the crowd. Jeongguk missed the way Taehyung smiled and laughed when everyone sang him the birthday song. What Jeongguk doesn’t know was that in all that Taehyung searched the crowd for Jeongguk. Taehyung missed Jeongguk.

When Jeongguk entered the scene, Taehyung was nowhere to be found, he asked around and got to know that Jimin and Taehyung were in the washroom cleaning off the cake.

The thought that Jimin had Taehyung alone at that time scared Jeongguk. He hadn’t told Yoongi and Namjoon anything yet and he still wasn’t sure why.

When Jeongguk entered the washroom, he saw Jimin and Taehyung, they were laughing at some story which was foreign to Jeongguk.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” Jeongguk said and the two boys turned towards him, “Jimin, can you give us a second?”

Jimin turned towards Taehyung, as if asking if he would be okay being alone with Jeongguk, when Taehyung gave him a nod, he left them alone.

Jeongguk made sure that there was no one in the washroom, he turned towards Taehyung and said, “Stay beside me.”

Taehyung looked at him in confusion and in the time that Taehyung took to answer Jeongguk, Jeongguk for the first time that night noticed how Taehyung looked. He wore a loose pant and a peach coloured see through shirt with a mesh underneath. He wore a few rings to accessorize himself and Jeongguk wouldn’t lie, Taehyung looked good. Looked like the guy the party was thrown for.

“What?” Taehyung was confused, his mouth opened slightly and his lips trembled as if he wanted to say more but couldn’t.

“I should have framed it better,” Jeongguk said as he realized how that would have sounded. “I want you to be by my side throughout the night, there are a lot of people here and I’m not sure anyone can be trusted.”

“I’m not gonna go around following you like a lost puppy,” Taehyung said in a defensive manner and crossed his arms.

“That’s not what I said,” Jeongguk said in frustration, it was hard to talk to Taehyung somehow, they weren’t like this before. “It’s for your own safety.”

“And you care?” That felt like a personal jab. Like, there was more than what was being said.

“It’s my job,” Jeongguk chose to answer it safely.

“Stop with this nonsense, I’m not gonna stand around you when you can’t even look me in the eyes and talk to me properly. I even tried talking to you but you won’t listen and you kept avoiding me-”

“If I’m the problem then I’ll let Yoongi do it, but you’ll have to be around one of us,” Jeongguk interrupted. He hated the anger in Taehyung’s tone but he knew it was his own fault.

“I’ve seen the way you look at me,” Taehyung said and crossed his arms. The movement gave his chest definition and Jeongguk tried his best to keep his eyes on Taehyung’s.

“What do you-” Before Jeongguk could ask more, Jimin entered. “Tae, everyone’s looking for you. It’s your party. Can’t you guys talk later?”

“There’s nothing left to talk,” Taehyung said and walked out, Jeongguk followed.

Jeongguk knew there was no way Taehyung would let him be near him so he decided to go for the backup, Yoongi. He spotted Yoongi near the dance floor, he was in position, eyes always scanning the room.

“You need to be with Taehyung,” Jeongguk said as he leaned into Yoongi’s ear. The music way too loud for his taste.

“What happened to you taking care of it?”

“I tried. He won’t let me.”

“That bad, huh? Well, just make sure Hoseok isn’t with them.”

“I’ll keep him distracted.” Jeongguk was about to turn to look for Hoseok when he remembered something, he turned back and said, “Keep an eye on Jimin for me.”

“You got an interest?” Yoongi teased and they both walked their ways.

Yoongi walked over to Taehyung, who was surrounded by some people. The only person he knew in the crowd was Seokjin. They both smiled at each other.

“Stay within five feet distance from me,” Yoongi whispered to Taehyung and without any fight Taehyung gave him a small nod.

For Yoongi, Taehyung and him had an understanding. They both were here to play their parts, Yoongi wouldn’t force himself in Taehyung’s life and Taehyung stayed out of Yoongi’s way as well. Taehyung was also always cooperative with Yoongi, which Yoongi appreciated.

“You wanna dance?” Jimin asked Taehyung.

“I’ll just find myself a booth to sit, I don’t think Yoongi would like me shaking my hips because he’ll have to be on the dance floor as well.”

“That’s true though,” Jimin said and then waved at a man in the crowd. “I’ll see you soon,” He said and ran towards the man.

Once Seokjin, Taehyung and Yoongi were seated on a booth, Taehyung asked, “Are you suspicious of anyone here?”

“No one looked out of ordinary,” Yoongi commented. As much as he would love to go in detail of how some people would just not stop looking at Taehyung, it wasn’t his place to jump to assumptions.

“They’re all nice people, I have known most of them for more than five years now.”

“You know, majority of the crimes that are committed are by you know in real life, someone you’re close with,” Yoongi said as a matter of fact.

“Stop scaring the kid, it’s his birthday today,” Seokjin said and rubbed Taehyung’s back, who just gave a nervous laugh.

“I’m just being honest, I don’t want you to isolate yourself just because there’s someone out there, I just want you to be a little bit more cautious.”

“This is still scary,” Seokjin announced and looked at the crowd ahead of them, everyone was dancing, busy within themselves. “Hoseok, Jimin, come join us,” Seokjin yelled when his eyes landed on them.

Jimin had his arm wrapped around Hoseok’s as they made their way towards the table. Yoongi made sure to look towards the crowd rather than at the Hoseok but he didn’t miss the way Hoseok’s smile dropped when he saw Yoongi. Yoongi would have lied and said his heart wasn’t hurt at that moment.

“We need to get this guy laid,” Jimin said as he enthusiastically pointed towards Hoseok. They all shifted to make place for Jimin and Hoseok. Seokjin and Taehyung just laughed at Jimin’s remark and Yoongi acted like he hadn’t heard shit.

“What has it been? Seventy years already? Come on, let the dry spell die tonight,” Taehyung punched Hoseok’s shoulder lightly.

“What is wrong with you guys? Are you guys drunk?” Hoseok laughed nervously.

“Grumpy cat wouldn’t let me drink but yes, Jimin is drunk,” Taehyung replied as he pointed towards Yoongi.

The thing was, everyone at the table was oblivious to the tension between Yoongi and Hoseok and as much as Yoongi would love it that way he also wanted to be excluded from the narrative.

“Come on, it truly has been ages since I saw you with someone and I know you’re really busy with work but make some time for yourself,” Seokjin said to Hoseok.

“I’m alright, guys. Stop this.” Hoseok laughed.

“Okay, how about Kim, he’s smart and handsome, earns good and, from what I’ve heard, is excellent in bed,” Jimin said sheepishly. He was giggling now, he really was drunk.

“Jimin, there are plenty of Kim’s in the room.”

“Yes, and you can pick any one of them, wow,” Jimin said and laughed which was later joined by Seokjin.

“You got game, boy, you got the body and the face, you don’t trust me?” Jimin pushed himself more towards Hoseok who just shook his head in disbelief, which Jimin took as denial.

“Yoongi,” Jimin called out but Yoongi stayed still.

“Hello, Jimin to Yoongi-”

“What are you doin-”

“Shut up okay,” Jimin said to Hoseok and took a deep breath before he yelled, “Min Yoongi,” at the top of his lungs. Even with the loud music, a bunch of people turned towards them and Yoongi looked at Jimin with a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. But drunk Jimin couldn’t figure the expression out.

“Yes, thank you for your attention, kind sir,” Jimin bowed to Yoongi with just made Seokjin laugh.

“How do you find Hoseok? Like, let’s say if you were a normal guy at some bar and Hoseok would come hit on you? What would you do?” Jimin’s questions caught everyone’s off-guard.

“Jimin,” Hoseok said in a high-elaborate-pitch.

“It’s not inappropriate, he’ll stop me if it is.”

All the eyes on the table were at Yoongi now, except for Hoseok’s.

“I don’t have to answer that,” Yoongi replied after a while.

“Yeah, you don’t have to, but wouldn’t you want Hoseok to get laid tonight? Should you help another man out?” Jimin pleaded. The answer was, no, Yoongi wasn’t looking forward to Hoseok getting laid that night. He couldn’t have said that out loud because that would raise questions even he couldn’t answer.

“I’m gonna go dance, cool myself off, anyone wanna join?” Hoseok abruptly stood up and started walking towards the dance floor.

“I’ll come,” Taehyung and Jimin said in union.

“I’ll head to the bar, I guess, you take care of the kids and call me if you need something,” Seokjin said and started walking towards the bar, he left Yoongi to himself and that gave the man a lot of time to collect himself.

Seokjin wasn’t in a mood to drink, even though he would never say no to a drink but Jeongguk sent a long message to Seokjin that morning and have asked him not to drink, Jeongguk just wanted to take some necessary precautions and Seokjin would do anything for Taehyung’s safety.

The only reason he made his way towards the bar was because he saw a familiar face, a body, if he was to be exact. Seokjin smiled as he walked.

“Hello, Officer,” Seokjin greeted as pushed his body forwards towards the bar’s slap.

“Please don’t call me that,” Namjoon laughed.

“You don’t like it? What do you want me to say? Mr. Uniform?” Seokjin teased. Seokjin had his back turned towards the crowd, his face turned towards Namjoon, whereas, Namjoon faced towards the crowd and away from Seokjin.

“Namjoon, just that’ll do,” Namjoon replied.

“No nicknames? How dull is that?” Seokjin leaned a bit forward towards Namjoon, he wanted Namjoon to notice him.

“Do you have any?”

“Yes, many, Jin, Jinnie, or my favourite, Worldwide handsome,” Seokjin said proudly.

“What?” Namjoon said and turned towards Seokjin, he was laughing, loudly. His head bowed low and hand covered his face.

“What? It’s true, do you think I’m not?” Even though Seokjin was only teasing, he still wanted to know what Namjoon would say to that.

“No, absolutely not.” The sincerity in Namjoon’s voice made Seokjin’s heart race.

“Don’t you have a job to do?” Seokjin said out of panic and moved Namjoon’s head towards the crowd, only so his eyes weren’t on Seokjin anymore.

“You look good,” Namjoon said faintly.

“What?”

“I said, you look good,” Namjoon repeated.

“Oh, ah, umm. Thanks.”

“For someone who’s Mr. Worldwide Handsome, you don’t take compliments that well,” Namjoon teased but his eyes stayed glued towards the crowd. They were in a corner, Seokjin and Namjoon. This corner gave Namjoon a good access to the whole room, he could see everything and he was on duty.

“Well, maybe I’m not used to them being coming from you,” Seokjin replied and moved his body a little more towards Namjoon.

“Maybe I should give it out more?”

“Yeah, you should.”

Seokjin was aware that he stood near to Namjoon now, way close than he would have felt comfortable with anyone else.

“Why are you even at the bar? The dance floor is certainly more entertaining than this side of the room,” Seokjin asked and looked in the front, the bottles of alcohol lined in front of him.

“Because I’ve heard that a certain someone likes to drink on celebrations,” Namjoon said and got the glass of water he kept for himself. He took a sip of water to wet his otherwise dry throat. He was nervous, flirting with Seokjin was a nervous territory.

“Are you that smooth in bed as well?” Seokjin replied and Namjoon choked on his water. He started coughing hysterically and Seokjin just laughed with him, he rubbed his back and patted it a little hard for the cough to go down. “Why would you start flirting when you can’t even take it yourself?” Seokjin yelled.

“You… call whatever you just said,” Namjoon coughed again, “Flirting?”

“What else was it? An invitation to my bed?” Seokjin yelled again and Namjoon’s eyes were big, he couldn’t believe the words that came out of Seokjin’s mouth.

When Namjoon had calmed down, he decided on two things, first, he couldn’t read Seokjin at all and second, never to take any liquid in front of Seokjin otherwise he’ll choke.

“Why are you here?” Namjoon asked instead.

“To give you some company,” Seokjin replied but took a step back, “I could leave if you don’t want me here.”

“No, no, that… that wasn’t why I asked,” Namjoon said and shook his head. He understood how it might have sounded wrong, “I’m sorry, I just… I meant to ask… Stay. Don’t leave.” He kept his eyes forward.

“As long as you’ll have me,” Seokjin smiled and teased to calm Namjoon down and Namjoon just bowed his head again and laughed.

“The party is in the front though,” Namjoon said when he realized that Seokjin had no intention of looking at the crowd. There was no one behind the bar except for three bartenders at the other corner.

“I like my view the way it is,” Seokjin said and moved towards Namjoon again.

“Oh God, are you drunk?”

“I’m not allowed to drink tonight,” Seokjin said.

“So, you’re flirting with me?” Namjoon laughed.

“Am I that bad at it?” Seokjin whispered in Namjoon’s ear and it made Namjoon shiver.

“I just don’t think it’s the right time,” Namjoon tried his best to his voice as stable as he could.

Seokjin’s shoulder were brushing with Namjoon with how close they both stood. Seokjin’s chin was practically touching Namjoon’s shoulder but instead of resting it he dropped his left hand down. He was to left side of Namjoon, Namjoon’s hand an invitation to be touched, to be grabbed. So, Seokjin took it. Took the opportunity and caressed his index finger over Namjoon’s thumb and finger.

“When do you ever have time for me? There’s never a right time with you,” Seokjin whispered in Namjoon’s ear and this time, his words were heavy, his tone challenging.

Namjoon couldn't reply, he stood there, eyes still fixed to the crowd and scanning the room.

Namjoon stayed quiet for too long, Seokjin moved his finger and started caressing the inside of Namjoon’s hand.

Seokjin was teasing, he was flirting, he wanted to see how far Namjoon would go with this. They both knew Namjoon was on duty, they both knew there’s absolutely nothing that could happen right now.

“You… you’re a distraction,” Namjoon said in a low tone.

“I...” Seokjin would never want Namjoon to be distracted from his work, it’s about Taehyung’s safety after all. He would hate if anything were to happen to anyone just because Namjoon wasn’t attentive and that too because of Seokjin.

“I should le-” Before Seokjin could walk away, before he even had the time to take his hand out of Namjoon’s, Namjoon grabbed his hand. Held it as delicately as he could. His touch was warm but nervous. His fingers were shaky.

“Stay,” Namjoon said again, “I’m gonna have a break in another five minutes,” Namjoon said and turned towards Seokjin. Namjoon’s pupils were blown, watching Namjoon like that ignited something in Seokjin.

“We can get out for a while,” Namjoon finished but Seokjin was too froze to even response. As soon as Namjoon turned back towards the crowd, he saw Yoongi making his way towards him.

Namjoon took a deep breath, being alone with Seokjin right now, this soon, it made his heart beat stronger and faster.

“You got a minute,” Yoongi said as he approached Namjoon and Namjoon could feel that something was wrong.

“Seokjin, could you excuse us for a second?” Yoongi asked politely and Seokjin nodded.

“Wait,” Yoongi called Seokjin back and said, “Just make sure to be with Jimin and Hoseok. You three need to be together right now.”

“Is everything okay?” Seokjin looked worried.

“Yeah, everything’s under control.” Namjoon noticed how Yoongi didn’t reply to Seokjin’s question but replied to his worry.

“Where’s Taehyung?” Seokjin asked.

“With Jeongguk,” Yoongi replied. With that being said, Seokjin gave Namjoon a last look, ‘Take Care’ return all over his face and Namjoon just gave him a nod.

“You need to go out towards the back, the side of the house to be exact. And watch that side. Jeongguk is at the terrace with Taehyung. Taehyung got a call from his parents and as it’s loud here, he went up and Jeongguk said he would go up to check on him because I saw someone go up a about twenty minutes ago and that person hasn’t come down yet.” Yoongi explained.

“Stay in touch and I’ll send few more guy inside,” Namjoon replied.

“I’ve asked Jeongguk to send me a signal on the walkie if anything happens, he just walked up a minute ago.”

They both nodded and Namjoon walked out, it was poorly lit outside even though it was bright as day inside.

Namjoon checked for his guns and asked the two guards outside to go in, Namjoon called for some back right then.

“Taehyung.” Namjoon heard Jeongguk from the terrace just when the song was changing. But as new song started, nothing could be heard anymore.

Jeongguk was on the terrace, it wasn’t huge but it did the work. Taehyung was on one end of the trace happily chatting on the phone.

“Taehyung,” Jeongguk called out. Taehyung turned towards Jeongguk and his smile dropped. He said something on the phone and then hung up.

“What are you doing here?” Taehyung asked.

“Who was that on the call?” Jeongguk asked instead.

“If you don’t answer my question, I don’t answer yours.”

“Don’t play smart with me right now, just answer the question.” Maybe Taehyung sensed the seriousness in Jeongguk’s voice. “My parents,” he replied nicely.

Jeongguk just walked towards Taehyung and they stood close. “Wha-” Jeongguk closed Taehyung’s mouth before he could speak. Taehyung was taken by surprise. He looked at Jeongguk with wide eyes and then he started resisting. “Shhh,” Jeongguk said and moved his other hand around Taehyung’s waist. They were close, face to face and chest to chest but Jeongguk wasn’t there with Taehyung. His ears were open. His eyes scanned the terrace. There were few random objects on the terrace, some posts, canvases, a small garage in the middle of the terrace and several random stools and chairs. There were no movement, but he trusted Yoongi, he knew someone was up here with them. He could feel it. He just wanted to know the direction.

He looked at Taehyung’s face for a second and there was fear. Jeongguk wished he could explain but he knew he couldn’t speak right now. Gently, he moved Taehyung behind him. Made sure that Taehyung was safe, that whoever it was out there with them, if he had a weapon, he would have to go through Jeongguk first.

“Wh-”

“Don’t move or speak,” Jeongguk whispered. He scanned the whole area again but he couldn’t see what was behind the garage. He couldn’t move towards the garage as he had Taehyung with him. He stood there, waited for the peron’s move.

A loud bang on the door startled him.

“Taehyung, we’ve been looking everywhere for you,” a very very very drunk Jimin yelled. He entered with the whole crowd. Everyone walked straight towards Taehyung and Jeongguk.

“Shit,” Jeongguk mumbelled and turned towards Taehyung, “Stay with me.” It wasn’t a discussion and Taehyung knew it.

Jeongguk quickly spotted Yoongi.

“I tried to stop Jimin but he’s too drunk, almost threw up on four different people and I don’t have enough manpower to handle fifty people.” Yoongi explained as they both stood on the side and kept an eye on Taehyung.

“We have to ask everyone to leave.”

“That means we’re letting go of the actual culprit.”

“Better leave him now than let anyone get harm,” Jeongguk said and Yoongi nodded. It was only a little after midnight but it was needed to be done.

“Kids, the party is over,” Yoongi yelled and everyone turned. The music was already low as Yoongi made sure to turn the volume down when everyone decided to move places.

Everyone protested to Yoongi’s words but Yoongi started motioning people to go down the stairs. Hoseok was pretty quiet during all of it. He stayed by a whining Jimin and an understanding Seokjin. Taehyung just stood there, smiled at everyone and thanked everyone for showing up. Every time a person walked towards Taehyung to hug him or wish him, Jeongguk would get nervous. The thought that anyone could have any weapon wouldn’t leave his mind.

Hyu and Una stayed by Taehyung for the longest. They both showed no signs as to when they would leave.

“You both have to leave as well,” Jeongguk said after a few minutes. Hyu was drunk, that much was clear. He was a bit too touchy to Taehyung as well, held Taehyung by the waist just like Jeongguk had a few minutes ago.

“I’ll be staying with him,” Hyu said and Jeongguk didn’t mean to laugh but he did. Laughed at the fact that Hyu thought he was the one giving out orders.

“I don’t think you heard me right, I said, both of you will have to leave as well,” Jeongguk said with irritation and Yoongi pressed his hand.

“I’m his boyfriend,” Hyu said a bit louder. “I would never harm him.”

“I’m his bodyguard,” Jeongguk replied calmly. “I’ll make sure you don’t lay a finger on him. Now, leave with dignity before I’ve to ask one of my men to escort you out.”

Hyu took a step towards Jeongguk, the same intimidating way people do when they are trying to fight someone. Jeongguk really tried his best not to laugh. Taehyung grabbed Hyu’s hand before he could take another step.

“It’s okay, you should go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Taehyung smiled at Hyu. Jeongguk looked away.

“You sure? I can stay the night over, I know how much you hate sleeping alone,” Hyu said and Jeongguk turned to look at the man.

“Yes, it’s okay, I’ll have Hoseok and Jimin with me.” Taehyung have another reassuring smile and Hyu smiled back. He leaned in to kiss Taehyung and Jeongguk was about to look away when he noticed Taehyung’s finger on Hyu’s lips.

“You’re drunk,” Taehyung said.

“It’s your birthday kiss,” Hyu replied.

“You’re still drunk.” Taehyung patted Hyu’s shoulder and the man turned to leave, he gave Jeongguk a look before his way out.

“Una, you’ll have to leave as well,” Jeongguk said poliety.

“She can stay,” Taehyung said but then he looked at Jeongguk and the seriousness on his face, “I mean, can she stay a little longer?” Una wasn’t a thread, her records were clean, she was one of the closest friend of Taehyung as well and Jeongguk would be around them.

“Not for too long,” Jeongguk replied and everyone moved down.

Namjoon met them all in the living room. Seokjin gave everyone water, Jimin desperately needed it.

“Why was everyone asked to leave?” Seokjin asked and then Yoongi looked over at Una, they couldn’t talk in front of her even if they wanted. All of Taehyung’s friend knew Taehyung had a bodyguard but they all knew a made up story. No one truly knew what was happening.

“I’ll take Una to my room, I wanted to talk to her,” Taehyung stood up and started walking followed by Una and Jeongguk.

“You don’t have to be here, you can be with the rest of them,” Taehyung said to Jeongguk.

“I can’t leave you alone tonight,” Jeongguk replied in a whisper so that Una couldn’t hear them. She already made her way to Taehyung’s bed.

Taehyung just gave Jeongguk a nod and the walked to the other side of the bed.

“You okay Tae, you look a little different?” Una asked.

“Hyu is cheating on me,” Taehyung said. The whole fell silence, even though there were only three of them, the atmosphere changed and it seemed like they’re crowded by with silence.

“What? Oh my God, Tae.” Una sat straight and turned towards Taehyung.

Taehyung just gave her a weak smile. Jeongguk could feel his blood boiling.

“How do you know that?” Una asked as she covered her mouth with shock.

“I received a message anonymously and at first I thought it’s a joke but then there’s proof.”

“Where? How? I’m so sorry, Tae.” Una reached out and grabbed Taehyung’s hand. Jeongguk just kept his eyes on them.

“It’s just, you know, Hyu is famous and all because of his dad and media is always trying to find things to bash someone that would make his dad look bad. If you search his name with the name of his partner, you’ll find few pictures and articles. I guess I never noticed because I wasn’t keen on news so much and all they talk about is violence and drama, so, if it wasn’t for the anon tip, I would have never known.” Taehyung explained and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath.

“Do you want juice? My throat’s all dried up,” Taehyung said and stood up. Una just gave him a small nod.

Taehyung went out to the kitchen to grab the drinks and Una went back to her phone. When Taehyung came back, the juice spilled got spilled on Una and she jumped from the bed.

“I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry, I must have zoned out,” Taehyung said and rushed towards his wardrobe. He pulled out a black plain shirt and gave it to Una.

“You go change in this, you’ll catch a cold with the drink on you, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I’ll change. It’s okay, Tae.” She walked towards the bathroom and as soon as she entered the bathroom Taehyung turned around and grabbed Una’s phone from the bed.

Jeongguk wasn’t sure what he was doing, Jeongguk wasn’t even sure if he was supposed to ask. Jeongguk just observed Taehyung’s face, his expression and there was nothing. His face was as blank as it was when he handed Una the shirt. Right before Una was out of the bathroom, Taehyung dropped the phone right where it was.

“I’m all changed and new,” Una declared as she was out.

“I’ll not hold you around for long, you should go get some rest tonight,” Taehyung said.

“No, it’s completely fine, I can stay over the night,” Una insisted.

“You really don’t have to, I appreciate it. You helped a lot with organizing all this and I can’t ask you to stay, you’ll not even get proper sleep here. Jeongguk wakes me up at five in the morning for some stupid drills,” Taehyung lied.

“Are you sure I should go? Jimin is really drunk and Hoseok might go home, I can sleep here with you, I’ll be here with you,” Una said and still went to grab her phone.

“Yes, I’ll be completely fine,” Taehyung said and turned towards Jeongguk, “I have Jeongguk.”

With those words, Jeongguk was certain that his heart skipped a beat. He was confident that his heart started racing as well and he was confident that a blush was rising.

“Okay, I’ll see you soon,” Una said and hugged Taehyung. Then she kissed his cheeks and smiled at him.

“I love you, I wouldn’t be here without you. Thank you so much. And about Hyu, don’t worry about it, it’s probably just a rumour and I’ll talk to him,” Taehyung said and smiled.

“I love you too. And you sleep good, okay? If you need me, just call me. If you need me to talk to Hyu, just let me know as well. I’ll ask his ass what he did now.”

They both hugged again and Una moved towards the door, she smiled at Jeongguk as a way to say bye and then she walked out the door.

As soon as she stepped out and Jeongguk heard her leave the house, Taehyung sat down on the floor. It looked like he was about to faint and it made Jeongguk worried. Jeongguk rushed towards Taehyung but stopped when he saw Taehyung’s face. His body was dull and he moved his legs towards his chest, held them close.

“Taehyung,” Jeongguk said in almost a whisper.

“I wanna be alone,” Taehyung replied in a broken voice.

“Are you okay,” Jeongguk asked.

“Can you please close the door on your way out,” Taehyung said poliety in a shaking voice.

“Do you need me to call Hoseok or Seokjin for you,” Jeongguk asked again.

“Tell them I’m asleep,” Taehyung said and he dropped his head on his knees. Taehyung’s eyes were all red, the tears just in his eyes and were fighting to escape.

Jeongguk wanted to comfort him, wanted to say something, just anything but he couldn’t. He wasn’t allowed and Taehyung doesn’t want him there. Jeongguk’s throat hurted. Jeongguk’s body felt heavy and he closed the door as he walked out.

He saw that everyone was still in the living room. Seokjin and Namjoon sat on opposite sides on the sofa, kept as much distance as they possibly can. Jimin laid down on the other sofa with his head on Hoseok’s lap and Yoongi sat on the stool in the kitchen.

“Jeongguk, tell me what’s happening, I’m worried,” Seokjin said as soon as he saw Jeongguk.

Jeongguk had to collect himself fast, he took a deep breath and walked towards everyone, stood facing them so everyone could hear.

“We think the culprit was with us tonight,” Jeongguk said and looked at Jimin. He was confident that Jimin wasn’t there but something about Jimin just doesn’t sit well with him.

“What? Who?” Hoseok asked.

“We don’t know yet, we have a lot of work to do from tonight but I want everyone to rest well,” Namjoon replied.

“How’s Taehyung?” Yoongi asked.

“He’s,” Jeongguk started and stopped, he had to lie to them, “asleep, was tired and just wanted to rest. We should leave him like that.”

“His door is closed, is that okay?” Seokjin said.

“It’s his birthday, it’s the least I can do for him,” Jeongguk replied. He hated not being there with Taehyung but he knew he couldn’t.

“You want some coffee?” Seokjin said and walked towards the kitchen, “I’ll make everyone coffee and they can stick around for longer.”

“I’m good, thanks, I’ll just… I’ll be in my room,” Jeongguk said and went straight to his room.

Taehyung on the other hand went to bed, crying wasn’t going to do anyone any good, he understood that fast.

He laid down on his bed and kept looking at all the pictures from today. Of Hyu, Una, Jimin, Hoseok, Seokjin, Namjoon, Yoongi and Jeongguk. There was one picture of Jeongguk and that too a blurry shot, but that was his favourite. Taehyung’s head hurted. The day was too exhausting. The day was too demanding. All Taehyung wanted was a cuddle but all he got was a cold bed.

Taehyung opened his phone and went through his messages, checked all the people who have messaged him and who all he had to reply later.

Jeongguk’s name was right there, he wanted to message him. Wanted to just talk. Wanted to know how long are they going to be like this? Another messages popped up from an unknown number.

_You looked good tonight._

Taehyung reread the message over a dozen times but he couldn’t understand who could have sent it.

 _How’s this?_ Taehyung replied.

 _Is that how you reply to a compliment?_ The message read.

Taehyung was too tired for this, he thought all of it was a prank. All his friends has had a habit of pranking Taehyung on his birthday and he thought it was one of those things. He was confident.

 _You have always looked good in the white, you still look as beautiful as well._ The new message read. Taehyung looked down and realized he wore a white shirt. The lights in his rooms were off so there was no way someone could see him from the outside, his curtains were pulled apart and the only light there was was of the moon.

Taehyung looked around to see if he could sense any moments in his room or outside.

 _Don’t look around, pretty, you’ll not see me._ Another message popped up. That was when it hit him that someone was looking at him through his phone’s camera.

Taehyung panicked. He wanted to yell but he wasn’t sure if he could. Suddenly he saw a red laser light inside his room coming from the outside. Taehyung lowered himself more into the bed, there was no way that laser light could touch him if he was deep in his bed.

His heartbeat was fast and so was his breathing.

 _What do you want?_ Taehyung replied.

 _What I’ve always wanted._ The messenger said.

Taehyung opened another message with Jeongguk. _Hurry, someone can see me from the outside._ Taehyung wrote and hit send.

 _You. You and only you._ The new message from the blocked number read.

 _As fast as you can, get beneath you bed._ The reply from Jeongguk said.

Taehyung wasn’t sure if he could move, he wasn’t sure if there was any way out of it. The laser light moved all around the room. Taehyung lowered the brightness of his screen and with one quick moment, rolled beneath his bed.

 _Hurry, i’m scared._ Taehyung wrote to Jeongguk. Taehyung was sure that Jeongguk must have been coming up with a plan but Taehyung was scared to death. The whole situation was making him lose his mind.

 _Beneath the bed are we? I liked you on top of it._ The new message from the blocked number read. Taehyung would reread all the messages, his heart would beat faster at every word. He was disgusted. His stomach felt weird.

There was knock on Taehyung’s door. “Taehyung are you safe?” Jeongguk’s voice calmed him down a little bit.

“I’m scared.” Taehyung almost yelled.

“He can’t touch you, he can’t hear you. I’ll not let anything happen to you, I promise.” Jeongguk yelled back from behind the door. Taehyung wasn’t sure why he wouldn’t enter. Why he just wouldn’t save him from this.

 _Talking to the boyfriend are we?_ The new message popped up. _You know I can see you talking even if I can’t hear you. Let’s put a target on him, shall we, pretty?_

Taehyung heart sunked as he watched the laser stop at the door.

“No no no no no, Jeongguk, run, run Jeongguk run,” Taehyung yelled on top of his lungs.

“Taehyung-”

“He has his gun pointed at you, run please run,” Taehyung yelled again but the door flung open. Then he heard the gunshot and then everything went black for him.

Taehyung blinked and blinked and blinked but he couldn’t focus, he couldn’t see or speak. He wasn’t sure if the time has stopped or if everything was in slow motion or if everything went fast. But he was sure only a few seconds has passed because Jeongguk walked towards the bed. Taehyung laid underneath it. His phone still right next to him. Taehyung wasn’t sure when the crying started but he was crying. His head was heavy, his heart was scared and he was scared.

Jeongguk looked at the bed for a second before he laid down on the floor. Parallel to Taehyung. Jeongguk laid down right where the bed ended and Taehyung was in the middle of the bed, underneath it.

They both looked at each other for a while. Silent. The only voice there was, of Taehyung’s breathing and irregular sobs. Jeongguk wanted to speak first, wanted to ask if Taehyung was okay but he stayed there. He would speak whenever Taehyung looked ready.

“Are you hurt?” Taehyung asked in between of his sobs. The room was dimly lit because of the lights from outside but if Taehyung could see Jeongguk well, he would notice how Jeongguk’s lips broke into a tiny smile over the concern.

All of it happened to Taehyung and Taehyung only and his first question was if Jeongguk was hurt or not.

“I’m not hurt, are you okay?” Jeongguk asked. Taehyung remained silent and just kept looking at Jeongguk.

Jeongguk was still very worried about Taehyung, he wanted to check if Taehyung was okay, physically as well. He for sure knew that Taehyung wasn’t emotional alright just yet but he wanted to check if there were any accidental wounds on his body.

Jeongguk, very slightly and slowly, moved his hand under the bed, towards Taehyung. Jeongguk’s palm was upwards and his finger’s losely open.

Taehyung moved his eyes towards Jeongguk’s hand and kept looking, Jeongguk wasn’t sure what was to happen next. He would wait a while and then ask Taehyung to walk outside. But he stayed just the way he was.

Then he saw Taehyung’s hand move and his fingers touched Jeongguk’s. Taehyung moved his hand a little more and placed it on top of Jeongguk’s. Jeongguk closed his hand around Taehyung’s and circled the back of Taehyung's hand with his thumb.

“You’re okay, we’re okay,” Jeongguk said reassuring him. They both were still on the floor. Taehyung gave him a nod and Jeongguk pulled Taehyung out from under the bed.

When they stood up Taehyung turned towards the window and saw the bullet. He forgot that all the glasses were bulletproof, for a second there he was actually scared that the culprit has pulled the trigger on Jeongguk.

They walked outside and Seokjin offered Taehyung water. Hoseok ran and a blanket and wrapped Taehyung in it. Jimin was awake again but he was still drunk. He tried to be as sober as he could.

Soon after Yoongi and Namjoon joined them.

“Did you catch him?” Jimin asked.

“He flew before we got there,” Yoongi replied, “But we have few stuff, the bullet’s shell and the phone he threw away.”

Yoongi didn’t wanted them to know more, they just needed to know that they’re not clueless. That it would take them less time to catch the culprit now.

“Taehyung can’t stay here tonight,” Namjoon said.

“Take him to our room with you,” Yoongi said to Jeongguk and he just gave them a nod.

“What about the rest?” Jeongguk asked. “It’s not safe for anyone to alone right now.”

“I’ll stay here with Seokjin, Jimin, Hoseok and Yoongi,” Namjoon replied. He looked over at Seokjin as if asking for permission.

“As much as I would want to but I can’t stay here tonight,” Hoseok said.

“Same,” Jimin said right after.

“I have a big day at work tomorrow and I have to be there at seven in the morning.” Hoseok looked over at Taehyung with guilt but Taehyung just smiled at Hoseok. Taehyung knew how hard Hoseok was worked to be where he was right that moment.

“I can drop you tomorrow morning,” Namjoon offered.

“All my stuff is at my house, we’ll have to leave by four from here if I have to make it on time, it’s better this way,” Hoseok replied. They all looked around, they knew they couldn’t leave Hoseok and Jimin alone.

“I would go with them,” Yoongi said and all eyes were on Yoongi.

“I would take Hoseok and Jimin to Hoseok’s place and make sure they both are safe,” Yoongi suggested.

“Will you be okay with it?” Namjoon asked and Hoseok wanted to protest, wanted to say no but he couldn’t. He just gave Namjoon a simple nod.

“Okay, so it’s settled. Yoongi takes Hoseok and Jimin to Hoseok’s, Jeongguk takes Taehyung to the safe house and Seokjin stays here with me,” Namjoon announced and as if on que, everyone started moving. They all greeted Taehyung for the last time and everyone made their way out.

“Take care of him and call me if you need anything, okay?” Seokjin said to Jeongguk right before they were about to leave. Jeongguk gave him a nod. Once the car left, Yoongi pulled up with car, Jimin rushed towards the back and just laid down on the backseat. Hoseok hesitated before taking the passenger seat.

“Seokjin, get some sleep, okay? Don’t worry so much, it’ll do no one any good.” Hoseok smiled and Seokjin nodded.

Once that car left, Seokjin turned towards Namjoon, “That leaves the two of us,” he said softly.

“All the doors and windows are locked, right?” Namjoon asked as they entered the house.

“Yes, ” Seokjin replied. There was this unsaid tension between them. Seokjin wasn’t sure what to say or do. He still wanted to know about the culprit but he also didn’t want Namjoon to be uncomfortable.

Namjoon stopped in the living room, he wasn’t sure where to go to next? Should he just walk towards Yoongi’s room or just sit down on the sofa right there.

“I’ll get you water, you look tired,” Seokjin said and they both moved towards the kitchen.

“It’s been a long day,” Namjoon replied.

“Do you mind me asking what happened outside?” Seokjin was careful, wanted to not polite but also wanted all the information. “And don’t lie please.”

“When Jeongguk got out of the room and told me what Taehyung has messaged him, that only left us with one place. The abandoned building just parallel to house and in front of Taehyung’s room. Everywhere else is empty around the house, just big empty grounds. So, I asked Yoongi to come with me, all the backup guys we had for the night were sent home because, I guess it’s my fault, I thought we all were safe.”

“It’s not your fault,” Seokjin said firmly.

“I should have known better,” Namjoon replied.

“There’s no way in hell you could have known that,” Seokjin pressed the topic.

“Well, then Yoongi rushed with me and I was certain that whoever the person is will see us before we can even catch them and that’s what happened, Jeongguk stayed outside the door for as long as he could, which bought us time but that wasn’t enough. The distance we had to cover was large and as soon as Jeongguk entered the room, I guess, that’s when the bullet went off. The building is huge as well, we couldn’t know which way or where the person was, so we just made a round guess.”

Seokjin handed the glass of water to Namjoon and he took a sip before he started again, “When we entered the building’s terrace, we saw few stuff, the bullet shell being the main thing, the disposable phone he was using to message Taehyung.”

“How are you so sure it’s a he?”

“He bumped his shoulder somewhere and he heard a loud yell, I’m certain it’s a man and girls aren’t that crazy, are they?” Namjoon joked to lighten the mood. “But we can never be too sure, a voice says nothing, even if I would have seen the back of the person, I could still only have a guess. But we all have a feeling that it’s a man. For once, majority of Taehyung’s friends are men, the only girls he hangs out with aren’t that close to him. And with what little evidence we have for what’s happening, it clearly looks like someone who was or is close to Taehyung.”

“Do you have any suspects?” Seokjin asked. He knew it was to early to ask but he just wanted to know.

“I shouldn’t be telling you this but I don’t believe it hundred present myself, so, well yeah.” Namjoon took another sip, “Jimin.”

“Jimin? Park Jimin? Our Jimin?” Seokjin was baffled. He couldn’t have heard it right.

“Yeah, him.”

“There is no way, no way on earth Jimin is in any way involved. Not even one percent. You can have my word on it,” Seokjin crossed his arms in a defensive manner.

“I’m not accusing him, it’s just a suspect list, you were on it as well and so was Hoseok. We can never be too sure of anything till we are.”

“Jimin would throw his life away from Taehyung in a heartbeat, he would never ever do anything like it ever, to Taehyung or to anyone for that matter. Even if he hated the person,” Seokjin’s voice raised.

“Hey, hey, Mr. Worldwide Handsome, I’m not accusing your friend. Jimin is just one of the suspects. Everyone who attended the party today is a suspect.” Seokjin smiled at the said nickname.

“Taehyung will be okay, right? Safe and sound?”

“Jeongguk wouldn’t let anything happen to Taehyung. As stupid as that kid is, he would take a bullet for Taehyung.”

“That whipped huh?” Seokjin teased.

“You’ve noticed?” Namjoon laughed.

“There’s just, I don’t know what to say it, tension? Going on between them, they just need to sort things out for themselves. Taehyung has a pure heart, a warm, kind, loving heart. He take things too personally, if you don’t explain why you disagree with him, he’s think it’s a jab at him. And you know what people say, communication is the key.”

“Wise words, oldman,” Namjoon teased.

“Get out of my house,” Seokjin laughed with surprise and slightly punched Namjoon’s right shoulder and Namjoon squealed in pain.

“Are you okay?” Seokjin got worried and walked towards Namjoon but Namjoon stopped him.

“Don’t… I’m okay, I’m okay.”

“You don’t sound okay, you sound like you’re in pain,” Seokjin said with concern.

“Take off your coat,” Seokjin said firmly, his hand stretched out towards Namjoon.

“What? No, I’m fine.”

“I said take your goddamn coat off, Namjoon,” Seokjin raised his voice and Namjoon went still. They both looked at each other and Namjoon knew there was no way he could get out of it. So, Namjoon did what he was told. Slowly, he started taking off his coat.

“You know, this isn’t how I imagined you would ask me to strip,” Namjoon joked.

“Not now, Namjoon,” Seokjin tried to press the smile. He wanted to be serious.

That’s when Seokjin saw, the white shirt ruined with red colour. It was like, Seokjin’s throat went dry all of a sudden, his eyes went wide and he couldn’t speak. He just looked at Namjoon who just shrugged his shoulder like it was nothing.

Seokjin took Namjoon’s left hand and lead him towards Seokjin’s bathroom.

“It’s really nothing, I can take care of it,” Namjoon said but Seokjin didn’t reply. He urged Namjoon to sit on the toilet seat and went to grab his first aid and dry and wet towels.

“How did It happen and what did you hit?” Seokjin asked. His own voice sounded foreign to him. He tried to calm his heartbeat so he could work with what’s in front of him.

“You don’t have to worry.”

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“When I was entering the building, it was all dark and I could hardly see anything. But I didn’t hear any footsteps, right when I was about to turn towards the terrace, the person pushed me, I was taken off-guard because I couldn’t hear or see him. I fell down some stairs and I guess that’s when I hit my shoulder to something, but it wasn’t bleeding then, when he ran past me, I grabbed his leg and that’s when he stabbed me whatever he had in his hand. I couldn’t see what it was but it clearly wasn’t a proper knife. Maybe a pocket knife. It wasn’t that sharp or long. That’s why the cut’s not deep. I hit my head and I blacked out for a few seconds and that was long enough for him to escape. Yoongi was on the other side of the building, he didn’t even hear anyone leave,” Namjoon explained with his head held down. Seokjin took the scissor and cute the whole sleeve from the shirt.

“You should have told me before, what even was your plan? You were to stay here for the whole night,” Seokjin’s voice was softer than the last time when he said that.

“Nothing really, I would wait for you to fall asleep and then go see what was needed to be done. We all know how to do first aid, we learn because that’s compulsory in the field.”

“You’re so stupid, Namjoon, the more you leave it open the more chances of an infection,” Seokjin said and he started treating the wound. It was true that the cut wasn’t deep but blood was still tripping out. He cleaned the blood first.

“I would have taken care of it,” Namjoon tried to sound confident, “And I can take my shirt off if you need me to, to work on it better,” Namjoon said innocently as he pointed towards the cut.

Seokjin smirked, “I don’t think my heart could take that view right now.”

“I… I didn’t mean… I didn’t… I meant…” Seokjin laughed because he had Namjoon flustered.

“I get it, I’m just teasing.” Seokjin laughed. Then they both remained silent. Seokjin worked hard, all his concentration on the arm and that was why he missed the way Namjoon was looking at him. He missed the small smile on Namjoon’s face and he missed the little blush on Namjoon’s neck and cheeks. He missed the way Namjoon’s body was warm because of Seokjin and not because of the wound. That’s why Seokjin missed the way Namjoon’s breathing would go uneven whenever Seokjin would touch his knee on accident.

Once they were done, Seokjin took Namjoon to his room.

“You’ll be sleeping here,” Seokjin said as he gestured towards his bed.

“I can sleep in Yoongi’s bed.”

“But you’ll be sleeping here,” Seokjin smiled and waved his hand towards his bed.

“I don’t want you to be uncomfortable,” Namjoon said in a low voice.

“If I was, I wouldn’t have asked you to sleep in my bed, I’ll get you some medicine and you can sleep, okay? We can take care of everything tomorrow,” Seokjin said and moved around his room to find the box of medicine.

“We?” Namjoon noticed as he moved to sit on the edge of the bed.

“Yeah, I’ll help you out with whatever you need,” Seokjin said.

“You don’t have to do my job for me,” Namjoon said and Seokjin could sense some uneasiness in his tone.

“I know, that’s why I’ll only be helping out.” Seokjin got the glass of water and got some painkillers and antibiotics.

“These will be good for the night and if you need anything else, you can ask me,” Seokjin said as he handed him the medicine.

“Where did you learn all this? The first aid,” Namjoon asked and Seokjin went to sit beside Namjoon.

“I cook a lot and I love trying out different style of cooking and knifes and sometimes it gets out of control and I just don’t see it coming. Sometimes the cuts are not deep, just light enough to cut the upper skin but not get the blood out but other times it’s deep, the knife is sharp and I just hated going to hospital every few weeks for such cuts. So, I took a proper class for first aid, learned everything I would ever need to know for such cuts,” Seokjin said and smiled at Namjoon. The night light in the room was on, it wasn’t bright but it was bright enough to see each other’s faces.

“Well, your cooking came in handy,” Namjoon gave a little laugh.

“It truly did, now, why don’t you rest, you’ve had a long day,” Seokjin said. Got the blankets for Namjoon and put them on the bed.

“I’m not sleepy, maybe the adrenaline is still high and I just can’t fall asleep.”

“And maybe the painkillers and antibiotic will kick in soon and you’ll be asleep in the next hour,” Seokjin said and gave him a pillow.

“Maybe. Till then, talk to me.”

“About what?” Seokjin asked and Namjoon took off his shoes. “Do you need comfy clothes, I have t-shirts and shorts that you can wear,” Seokjin added.

“Just the shorts will do, I’ll keep the same shirt on.” Namjoon soon changed into a pajama given by Seokjin and went to lay down on the bed.

“Which side is mine?” Namjoon asked.

“Whichever suits you,” Seokjin replied.

“I’ll take the right side then, so that I can sleep on my left arm and still look at you.” Namjoon was painfully aware that they were alone and that nothing could happen between them, not tonight, not ever. He’s Kim Seokjin and he’s just Kim Namjoon.

“I’ll like that,” Seokjin said with a shy smile and Namjoon settled on the bed.

“You kissed me on the forehead the other night,” Namjoon said all of a sudden.

Seokjin laid down next to him after he has turned off the lights. The room was still lit by the moonlight from the window. “Yes, I did.” Seokjin made sure that there was enough distance between the two. His bed was big enough to fit three people.

Namjoon just smiled to Seokjin’s answer. He wanted to ask or maybe say more but he knew his smile would be more than enough of an answer.

“Where were you plans when you were gonna take a break at the party tonight?” Seokjin asked and Namjoon laughed. Loud, louder than Seokjin has ever heard him.

“Oh God, don’t ask me that now,” Namjoon said and laughed again.

“Too embarrassed to say it.”

“Maybe too flustered to say it,” Namjoon admitted.

“I’m looking forward to you doing what you were gonna do,” Seokjin teased and bopped Namjoon’s nose which just made Namjoon smile harder.

“Did you just bop my nose?”

“Tell me to stop if you don’t like any of it,” Seokjin replied and smiled. Namjoon just rubbed his nose in the softest way Seokjin has ever seen.

“Sleep now, I bet you have an early start in the morning, I already have you phone on charging and if anyone important, and by that I only mean Yoongi or Jeongguk, will call I’ll let you know.”

“Goodnight, Seokjin.” Namjoon smiled as his eyes started getting heavy with the medicine.

“Sleep well, Joonie,” Seokjin whispered and he could see a small smile forming on Namjoon’s lips before he fell asleep.

 

Yoongi reached Hoseok’s place in next half an hour. A sleepy Jimin almost crawled his way into the apartment. Throughout the ride no one spoke a word. Jimin was asleep the whole time and Yoongi and Hoseok just stayed quiet.

Once they were inside Hoseok’s apartment Yoongi felt awkward, was he supposed to leave or stick around? He wasn’t sure. He knew for a fact that they both are safe but still he wanted to stay the night to make sure they both truly were. But he couldn’t. Everything with Hoseok, he just couldn’t.

“You can get the water from the kitchen, I’ll put Jimin to bed.” These were Hoseok’s first words to Yoongi as soon as they entered.

Yoongi just stood by the sofa, waited for Hoseok to be out of the room so he could politely leave.

Once Hoseok was out, he closed the bedroom’s door behind him as slowly as possible.

“I should get going,” Yoongi said as soon as Hoseok walked towards the sofa.

“You always do what you want so why bother informing me?” Hoseok was bitter, he sounded petty and he knew it. He crossed his arms defensively. Yoongi was sure he wanted to leave but this thing was Hoseok just doesn’t feel right, the way Hoseok was looking at him right that second, felt wrong.

Yoongi stood right where he was, looked up at Hoseok one more time and just kept his eyes on him.

“Say something if you need to because I’m tired Yoongi,” Hoseok said. Yoongi could almost hear his voice tremble.

“I’m sorry,” Yoongi said slowly.

“For what? Avoiding me? Ignoring me whenever I tried talking to you? Make me feel and look stupid? For never explaining anything and making me think what I could have done wrong? Or for kissing me?” Hoseok asked, he tried his best to keep his voice low because Jimin was asleep.

Yoongi couldn’t reply.

“If you’re just gonna stand here and not say a word, you might as well just leave like you were gonna,” Hoseok said again, frustration and anger clear in his voice.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” Yoongi said and stayed quiet again but this time Hoseok stay quiet as well. Yoongi took another deep breath and spoke again, “I shouldn’t have ignored you like that, that was wrong of me.”

“And why did you ignore me all this time?” Hoseok’s voice was softer than before.

“I… I just didn’t know how to face you,” Yoongi said and hung his head low, looked down and anywhere but Hoseok.

“Did I do anything wrong?” Hoseok’s voice was small, so small that it almost broke Yoongi’s heart. When Yoongi walked out Hoseok’s apartment that night he never thought of how Hoseok would have felt, he never thought that Hoseok would blame himself, his first thoughts were that Hoseok would blame Yoongi and not himself but Yoongi was wrong.

Here he was in front of Hoseok who looked so weak but yet so brave, who looked so small but yet so strong. Who looked like the world would walk all over him and he wouldn’t even make a noise.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, it was me. I shouldn’t have done it. I shouldn’t have kissed you back. I shouldn’t have let myself get carried away like that,” Yoongi tried to explain.

“So, you never planned on kissing me?” Hoseok asked and even thought Yoongi could hear how low his voice sounded he couldn’t look up. Couldn’t look at Hoseok.

“I… No, I never did,” Yoongi lied. Lied like it’s his mother tongue. Lied like he has never imagined those lips on his own, lied like he has never imagined his hand on Hoseok’s body, lied like he has never imagine what sounds they’ll made inside four walls.

“Why were you at my place that night?” Hoseok asked instead and that caught Yoongi off-guard. He never expected that question.

He looked for the first time, look at Hoseok’s face. Hurt painted all over it. Hoseok could fool the whole world with his smile and aura and that was the only thing Yoongi has learned in the short period.

“I… for the chicken. To give you that.”

“Why?” and Yoongi had no answer for that. ‘I was worried you were alone and I wanted to make you happy,’ wasn’t a suitable answer.

“Because Seokjin said you’re alone and misses home,” Yoongi hoped and prayed that Hoseok would just drop it. But Hoseok knew every word out of Yoongi’s mouth was bullshit.

“And why did you bother with your company? Why did you bring the chicken? Why did you not leave right after giving me the chicken? Why did you stay over and listen to me talk about nonsense? Why did you let our knees bump and act like it wasn’t a big deal? Why did you not stop me when I leaned in to kiss you? Why did you lean back to kiss me? Why?” Hoseok sounded impatient. Hoseok sounded frustrated and angry. Hoseok sounded like he has lost hope again.

Then the door to Hoseok’s door opened. A very sleepy Jimin appeared. “Am I interrupting something?” Jimin said cheekily, unaware of anything that was happening.

Hoseok realized that now Yoongi and him only stood a foot apart, he was sure that he was at the end of the sofa before it but now they were close.

“No, Mr. Min was just leaving,” Hoseok said bitterly but Yoongi heard the hurt in his voice.

Yoongi just nodded to no one in particular. He hid his face low and just turned out to leave. Just turned out and acted like his heart wasn’t heavy. Just left and acted like his vision wasn’t blurry. Acted like his body wasn’t aching. Acted like he was fine.

 

Taehyung stayed silent in the passenger seat. The music was turned off and Jeongguk was quiet. Maybe to give him time to relax himself but how could he when he knew someone would have put a bullet in Jeongguk if the glass wasn’t bulletproof.

“Distract me,” Taehyung said after a while.

“What?” Jeongguk replied, not sure if he heard him right.

“Say something, tell me something, ask me anything, do something, keep me occupied. Act like nothing bad happened tonight, still act like it’s my birthday. Act like everything’s okay.” Taehyung took a deep breath. His hands were shaking. His breath was uneven.

“Do you want me address the elephant in the room?” Jeongguk said after a while, his voice as light as it used to be.

“What?” Taehyung asked in confusion. Taehyung turned on his seat so he could face Jeongguk without making himself uncomfortable with the seatbelt.

“You’re wearing my shirt,” Jeongguk said and smiled.

“Oh my God, stop talking,” Taehyung yelled which made Jeongguk laugh. The laugh calmed down Taehyung more. After what happened tonight, he needed a distraction, he needed the laughter, he needed it.

“The day I came, the shirt disappeared mysteriously and at first I thought I must have kept it somewhere and I just couldn’t find it but then I see you now,” Jeongguk said and turned to look at Taehyung but Taehyung just pushed his face.

“Eyes on the road, Mr. Jeon,” Taehyung yelled again.

“Do you wanna explain?” Jeongguk asked in between on his laugh.

“I don’t.”

“Come on, do you have a habit of stealing clothes? Or what?”

“I… it was supposed to be a prank. The first day when I came to your room and saw your shirt unsupervised-”

“Oh, you mean it’s my fault and I should have kept my eyes on my shirt and should have supervised it better,” Jeongguk laughed again.

“Will you let me finish? Do you even wanna hear it?” Taehyung yelled louder.

“Go on, please.”

“Anyway, so, at first I took it. I thought I’ll play around with you, take your things and put it back and then take it again but then I forgot out the shirt the next day, I kept it deep in my wardrobe and I just forgot about it. Till after a few weeks and I thought it was too late to carry on the prank.” Taehyung went quiet for a second.

“Then I saw it again the day you left for Busan, I was angry at you, I wanted to burn the goddamn shirt in your own room. I picked it up again and I thought I’ll just put it back but then, oh god, it’s gonna sound so weird. I don’t know, okay, I smelled it and it smelled just like you and I… I guess I missed you more than I was angry at you. You wouldn’t talk to me, you wouldn’t listen to me, you believed whatever you wanted to and you wouldn’t let me explain. Then I just wore it, just to see, I guess, I don’t know. It felt, it’s sounding so weird, but it felt safe, I don’t know. So, I just kept it. And I was nothing having the best of the days so I took it out again to wear it tonight after Una and you left the room. It helps me sleep at times, now, no more questions and we have never talking about it. Oh my God.” Taehyung started rubbing his face furiously. His cheeks were warm, hot. His neck was warm and so was his body. He could feel his heart beat in his ear.

“I’m sorry,” was all what Jeongguk said.

“What?”

“I should have acted better, I… I shouldn’t have acted the way I did, it was impulsive and stupid,” Jeongguk said in a low voice.

“Yes, it was impulsive and stupid,” Taehyung yelled and Jeongguk laughed. They reached Jeongguk’s place soon and when they got out of the car Taehyung realized that it was sort of a unit they were in.

“What is this place?” Taehyung asked.

“It’s where we all live, everyone here is a bodyguard, this is like where the company’s guesthouses and residence are.”

“What? Wow, this is huge,” Taehyung said as they made their way towards the main door. When Jeongguk opened the door, Taehyung entered like it was his own house.

“The place is big, wow,” Taehyung said.

“Yoongi and I share it sometimes, whenever one of us have time,” Jeongguk replied.

“You should just get some sleep right now, tomorrow is gonna be a long day,” Jeongguk said before Taehyung could speak again.

They went to Jeongguk’s room, “Promise to give me a tour of the house tomorrow?” Taehyung said and Jeongguk gave him a nod.

If Taehyung could describe Jeongguk’s room in one word, it would be, dry. There was absolutely nothing in the room except for a table and laptop and a desktop. Nothing else if you exclude the bed.

The walls were empty, the floor was empty, the whole room looked and felt huge.

“No comments on my room please, I can see it on your face that you are gonna say something but save it for tomorrow,” Jeongguk said as he made the bed.

Once he was done, he looked over at Taehyung. When Jeongguk took Taehyung out of his room, he was only in Jeongguk’s shirt, it was an oversized shirt which meant it came at around Taehyung’s thighs. He wore nothing underneath it. Taehyung was a walking distraction for Jeongguk and Jeongguk did everything in his power to look at anywhere but at Taehyung or near Taehyung.

“Are you making the bed for us?” Taehyung asked cheerfully.

“For you, I’ll be sleeping outside.”

“What? Why? No.”

“I can’t sleep in here with you,” Jeongguk said.

“Why?”

“Because it’s not right,” Jeongguk said.

“Who said that? I’m scared and I can’t sleep alone, you have to sleep with me,” Taehyung almost pleaded.

Being this close to Taehyung was already hard on Jeongguk, sharing a bed with him, being that close would just make Jeongguk go crazy.

“Okay,” Jeongguk said it for Taehyung and Taehyung jumped on the bed. He already laid down even before Jeongguk could grab another pillow.

Jeongguk went to change and when he came back Taehyung was right as Jeongguk left him.

“Don’t you wanna sleep towards the wall? You’ll feel safer that way,” Jeongguk said.

“No, you take the wall side, I wanna sleep facing the door. It’ll make me feel safer.” Taehyung looked over at Jeongguk and Jeongguk nodded. He went towards the place he was supposed to lay in and after a few adjustments laid down.

The room was dark now, little to no light in the room.

“Cuddle me,” Taehyung’s voice echoed in the room.

“What?”

“Cuddle me, if you’re comfortable, I feel safe when I’m hugged or cuddled. Skinship makes me feel loved,” Taehyung said innocently. “Otherwise, we can change the position and you can take my place and I’ll go to the wall’s side.”

Taehyung’s back was towards Jeongguk and he thought that is how they would sleep for the rest of the time. Jeongguk hesitated for a few seconds, then really slowly he wrapped his arm around Taehyung’s waist.

“Sorry, I’m ticklish,” Taehyung giggled and adjusted himself.

“Jeongguk, can I ask you a favour?” Taehyung asked.

“Hmm.”

“Can you act like we’re lovers tonight?” Taehyung said softly.

“What?” Jeongguk was surprised. He never expected this, wasn’t sure what even was happening.

“We don’t have to kiss, not have to do anything that would make you uncomfortable. Just stay like this, but like you’re in love with me and I’m in love with you. We don’t have to say I love yous but I wanna believe for the night that I can if I want to and that you’ll say it back because that’s what we are,” Taehyung said and took another breath, “But of course, you don’t have to do it, if you don’t want to. I’ll not even ask for an explanation. I know-”

Taehyung was cut off because Jeongguk pulled Taehyung towards him, this made him speechless. Taehyung’s back was pressed on Jeongguk’s chest and their legs almost intertwined. In silence, Taehyung wrapped his arm around the Jeongguk’s arm which held Taehyung’s waist. Jeongguk’s face was very close to Taehyung’s neck and he could feel Jeongguk’s breaths on his skin.

“I want you to listen, Jeongguk,” Taehyung said. Maybe he kept a lot of things in, maybe he was being stupid and irrational and he should just shut up but maybe he just wanted to be heard.

“I’m gonna tell you things that you’ll listen and not react to, that you’ll listen and not give me advice on, that you’ll listen and not try to find good things in it because there are none.”

Jeongguk stayed quiet. Just pressed Taehyung closer to his body, both of their heartbeats were fast and maybe that was the reason why both of them were clueless about it.

“Hyu is cheating on me. Una knew about it but she never said a word. She supported Hyu in all of it. I was suspicious from the starting but I never fully knew, I always used to think that I was being stupid but I thought I’ll just see where it leads me,” Taehyung started.

“The only reason I called Una in today was to see how she’ll react and she reacted the way anyone would and then when I told her that if she would look up Hyu’s name with the person he’s cheating on me with, then she’ll find the reports. I threw the juice on her on purpose so that she would leave her phone and I could check who she looked up. She is dumb like that, impulsive like that. She thinks no one else uses their brain except for hers. When she rushed towards the bathroom I took her phone, I’ve known her passcode for ages now, we both used to have the same passcodes but then I changed mine and she never noticed.” Taehyung took a breath. He wanted all of it out.

“She looked up Hyu’s name with hers. I knew Hyu was cheating and I knew Una knows but I never knew that they both are doing it behind my back. That I am the stupid one among us, the clueless one. Then a message from Hyu popped up on her phone and it just read ‘I love you, he’ll never know’, then she came back. She used to call herself my long lost sister, she used to call herself the love of my life. She and I used to be inseparable but she was just using me.” Taehyung laughed, it wasn’t a happy one but a bitter one.

“You know, what’s funny? That none of it is even real, Hyu and I are not even dating. We’re faking for the world. For everyone, for everything. I don’t even like Hyu.” Taehyung stopped and closed his eyes.

“It started last year, my dad asked me about my thoughts on marriage and I said I was too young to even think about it and that I wasn’t in love with anyone. He asked me what I thought of Una, her dad and my dad works in the same field and his plan was to merge the businesses together with our marriage. I said Una is my best friend but I wouldn’t wanna marry her. He said, he would give me a week, if I could give him a good enough reason other than the fact that I don’t wanna marry una, then I’ll have to marry her. So, Una, Hyu and I were talking and we came up with a plan. That I would tell my dad that I’m dating Hyu and that I can’t marry Una because I would wanna settle down with Hyu in the future.” Taehyung laughed again.

“We were so stupid, all of us. I told dad and turned out Hyu’s dad’s business is bigger than Una’s dad and that Hyu and I together I better for business that Una and I. My dad agreed. He was happy and wanted to fix a date. I told him we’ve just started dating and none of us wants marriage right now. He said he’ll be ready whenever we are. Hyu and I faked it for over a year. In few months he started telling me that he’s in love with me, that he truly wanted me but then he would go and hook up with other people. He would come back and tell me how much he was in love with me and the next day he would be kissing someone in a shady bar.” Taehyung hated this drama. He hated it. He hated living live this.

“I told him we should break up but Una convinced me that we shouldn’t, that we should play it along till I find someone, till I have a reason to be out. I hate it, even when I know we aren’t dating and that Hyu and I aren’t real, I still couldn’t see myself with someone else, the guilt would eat me. Once I kissed someone and I couldn’t sleep for a week because I felt like I’ve cheated on him for real. Every time he would go hook up with someone, my heart hurt because even if we were in a fake relationship, I just wanted the love and affection. Maybe I would have actually fallen for Hyu, just like in all those fake-pretend novels and movies, where they fake date and then actually fall in love, maybe I wanted that. Maybe, I was so helpless I thought no one would ever love me and I just-”

Taehyung couldn’t continue anymore, he felt vulnerable, he felt week, he felt stupid. But when Jeongguk pulled him closer again and Jeongguk’s lips brushed on his hair, it felt right. It felt like this was right where Taehyung belonged. With Jeongguk. In Jeongguk’s bed. In Jeongguk’s arm.

“I don’t know where I was going with this, but I just wanted you to know one thing and yeah, maybe I am just saying it with the flow of the motion and I just want to let you know. But I can bet my life on it that I’ll not regret it ever. Yes, I’ll be embarrassed and I might try to avoid you but no, never regret.” Taehyung laughed and this time it was a happy laugh and Jeongguk let out a small laugh himself.

“Jeongguk, when I first saw you, I thought you would wanna control my life. I wanted to hate you, I wanted you to leave as soon as you’ve entered, without a warning. But then you laughed and it was stupid and I wanted to hate it but I couldn’t and then everything just went down so fast, like-” Taehyung stopped himself again.

“Long story short, I guess what I’m trying to say is, because of you, I’m glad I’m not in love with Hyu or anyone else. I’m glad I never had or have feeling for Hyu or anyone else. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow or the day after, I just know that as long as I see you and Yoongi and Namjoon around, I’ll live. I’ll be happy. I’ll be truly happy. You three have, in such a short period of time, impacted me and my friends, which is so rare.”

Taehyung thought would should be the end of it. He just wanted it to be tomorrow already so that he could say whatever was said was in the past but it was all happening right then.

“I don’t want you to say anything tonight, Jeongguk. Just don’t speak at all. Just wish me goodnight or whatever. Talk tomorrow, if you have to. But not now. Just sleep for tonight. Just be with me for tonight. Good night, Jeongguk,” Taehyung said and closed his eyes again. His heart was wild, his breathing uneven, his body way too warm and he tried his best to calm himself down.

“Good night, Taehyung,” Jeongguk said softly, with the way Jeongguk spoke, Taehyung could sense a smile but he wouldn’t get carried away. Then Jeongguk planed a small kiss on Taehyung’s head, more on the hair than on the actual skin but all of it just made Taehyung smile. Way too hard and way too bright than he would want to admit. He released Jeongguk’s hand which he was holding and just hid with face with both of hands as if Jeongguk could see him. He blushed hard but smiled harder.

They have a lot of things they need to figure out but maybe all of it would be okay, maybe all of them would be safe. And just Maybe, they would be happy in all of it as well.

Taehyung fell asleep with Jeongguk’s arm around him, his back pressed his chest and both of their breathing slow and deep. Jeongguk feel asleep, right how he wanted to be, with Taehyung.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally pulled through, please love me. I tried my best.  
> But honestly, thank you so so so much for waiting and I know I take a while to update but i'm just really sorry.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. the lack of Yoonseok in this chapter truly made me sad but there's so much to come for them.  
> Let me know what you think of the chapter and let me know what you think of the story in general. I'll appreciate it. Thank you so much for reading.


	6. Chapter 6

“I’m so moved,” Namjoon said.

“What? Cows moo-ved?” Seokjin made a Seokjin joke as he kept chopping the omelet.

It was too early for Namjoon to process Seokjin’s joke. He got up literally a minute ago, and when he saw the empty bed, he went in search for the boy, found him in the kitchen at dawn making breakfast.

“Won’t you smile at me, Namjoon?” Seokjin said dryly, Namjoon has always laughed at Seokjin’s ever joke and Seokjin expected no less at early dawn as well.

“Ah ha ha,” Namjoon gave a laugh, he genuinely was pleased but tiredness and medicines were still working strong on him.

“I’ve been doing this for an hour,” Seokjin continued.

“Ha ha ha ha,” Namjoon gave out a louder laugh, every word crystal clear.

“Why are you up? You should have stayed in bed,” Seokjin said, he himself couldn’t sleep, last night haunted him, he was still worried about Taehyung and Namjoon’s condition. Even though the cut wasn’t deep and he knew Namjoon was alright, he still couldn’t stop the worry.

“You weren’t there,” Namjoon said. There were no filters this early in the morning. Namjoon couldn’t even shut up.

“Missed me?” Seokjin teased.

“Why are you up so early?” Namjoon asked instead.

“I wanted to make you breakfast, and I wanted to offer it you in bed but you’re out in the open now,” Seokjin said and started putting out the food in a bowl and a plate.

“We can go back in together?” Namjoon questioned and Seokjin gave him a smile.

Soon in bed, they both ate silently, Seokjin knew better to talk right then, the way Namjoon ate it looked like he hadn’t had dinner last night. Which made Seokjin worry more, he was so preoccupied with everything he must have forgotten to ask Namjoon for dinner. Namjoon was on duty last night and the chances of him having a break long enough to have dinner was low.

“You want more?” Seokjin asked once Namjoon finished.

“I shouldn’t,” Namjoon replied but Seokjin already was putting more food in his plate.

Once they were fully done, they sat down on the bed again. This time no one broke the silence. There wasn’t much to be said, Seokjin knew Namjoon had to leave and there was nothing that he could say that would stop him.

As if on cue, Namjoon’s phone buzzed.

“It’s a message from Yoongi, he’s asking when I’ll get there,” Namjoon said and Seokjin gave him a nod. No one bothered to move again. It was hardly nine in the morning and both of them knew that the day was going to be long.

“When do you have to leave?” Seokjin asked and looked at Namjoon. They were sitting face to face, as much as it seemed awkward, it wasn’t.

“As soon as you’ll let me,” Namjoon tried his luck with humor and Seokjin laughed.

“Then I guess you’ll staying over tonight as well,” Seokjin replied.

“Is that an offer?” Namjoon asked with one of his eyebrows raised.

“To get into my pants? No,” Seokjin replied and Namjoon choked on air. Seokjin laughed and got up to get a glass of water for Namjoon and when he handed it to him, he said, “Why do you ask such open questions when you can’t take the answers?”

“I never expect you to go down that line,” Namjoon replied as he took a sip.

“What do you expect me to go down on?” Seokjin asked with a smirk and Namjoon choked on his water. Seokjin laughed with his head thrown back and patted Namjoon’s back for him to cough it all out.

“You saw that coming, you had that coming,” Seokjin laughed loudly.

“I shouldn’t open my mouth at all, I always think before speaking but I never… you know what, never mind.” Namjoon stood up and started gathering his things.

“Is Yoongi gonna pick you up?” Seokjin sat back down on his bed and watched as Namjoon arranged himself.

“Nah, I’ll probably drive,” Namjoon replied.

“With that hand? No, you’ll not. Tell that grumpy old man to come pick you up.”

“You’re older than him and you know that, right?” Namjoon turned back to look at Seokjin.

“Are you calling me old?” Seokjin crossed his arms over his chest.

“I… You… I… you called Yoongi old,” Namjoon stuttered hard.

“Wow, so, you’re calling me old. I see how this is. I give you food, shelter, protect and sleep and this is how you treat me?” Seokjin said in an over dramatic voice which only made Namjoon smile harder.

“I’m truly so grateful for that. And there’s nothing wrong with being old, someone’s gotta do it. In a group of people, someone has to be,” Namjoon said.

“So, you’re saying you’re into older men?” Seokjin teased but it was a question even he wanted an answer to.

“When did I say that?” Namjoon’s eyes went big and his jaw dropped. Seokjin was truly unbelievable.

“So, you’re not into older men?” Seokjin visibly looked a little sad at that comment but before Namjoon could reply his phone rang.

Namjoon looked back at Seokjin but picked up the call.

“Yoongi, I’ll be there in about an hour or so.”

“Do you want me to pick you up?” Yoongi asked and Namjoon looked at Seokjin again.

“I’ll get there, you don’t have-” “You give me the phone, Kim Namjoon.” Seokjin yelled at Namjoon and Namjoon handed him the phone.

“Yes Yoongi, you come pick him up,” Seokjin said and he could hear Yoongi’s laugh.

“Yes sir, anything else that needs to be done?” Yoongi teased.

“Just have breakfast before you leave, I’ll send lunch because I can bet my life that Jeongguk can’t cook and I know for a fact that Taehyung can’t.”

“Will do,” Yoongi replied.

“How’s Hoseok and Jimin? I haven’t spoken to them yet,” Seokjin asked and Yoongi went silent for a second too long.

“I don’t think they need me, they’re fine.”

They hung up soon after.

Namjoon soon came out of the washroom. His pants rode low on his waist and his shirt was unbuttoned. Seokjin couldn’t see much expect for the little skin between the buttons and in Seokjin’s defense, Namjoon’s shirt was open.

“I took a quick shower when you were on the phone with Yoongi,” Namjoon said. His hair was still dry, must have been hard for him to use right hand.

Seokjin couldn’t say much, just gave him a nod and acted busy. From the corner of his eye he noticed that Namjoon was struggling. He could hardly make his right hand move and every time he did, he winced in pain as well.

“Let me do it,” Seokjin said and replaced Namjoon’s hand with his own on the buttons. Seokjin didn’t know where to look. If he looked Namjoon in the eye, it would be too intimate, they stood close. If he looked at Namjoon’s chest, that would be too much for Seokjin. So, he decided to look at his hands instead as he did the buttons.

Seokjin for a second thought he should run his hands over Namjoon’s chest but then he stopped himself, that would be too much. Sure, they’ve flirted but Namjoon wouldn’t be okay with it, right? Then Seokjin looked up and realized that Namjoon’s eyes were already on him. Seokjin held his gaze for a second before it became too much.

“Why are you looking at me?” Seokjin said shyly. His voice almost a whisper. He was done with the buttons and then he took a step back.

“You’re beautiful, Seokjin,” Namjoon said in a breath.

This time, Seokjin had no comeback. Nothing he could say, nothing came to his mind. He looked at Namjoon, for a second, he thought that it was a joke and that Namjoon would laugh now but he never did. Seokjin looked down, a blush rose up from his neck to his cheeks. He could feel it. His ears went red and he knew it.

The silence grew and no one said a word. Namjoon thought he made a mistake, “I’m sorry, I’m really sorry.” Seokjin looked up at him in confusion.

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Namjoon said and took an involuntary step back.

“What? No, no no no,” Seokjin said, his voice still low and soft.

“You didn’t, no, you didn’t. It’s just, I… I didn’t expect you to say that.”

“Oh, okay okay,” Namjoon said softly. He sat back on the edge of the bed. There was clearly an awkward tension between them now.

“You know we’ve met before,” Seokjin broke the silence.

“What? We have?” Namjoon looked up at him and Seokjin took a step towards him.

“Yeah, you once came to this restaurant I was interning at. I think you had a meeting. Like, I saw you when you entered, from the kitchen. We have this stupid bet, where we used to make bets on who’ll order what. We were pretty good at guessing what kind of people we’ve.”

Namjoon just smiled at him in confusion.

“Anyway, that’s not the point, so you were with five more people and even thought the others didn’t pay attention to the waiter, which is so rude, it cost people nothing to be nice, you were really nice to him. He came back and praised you, said you talked nicely and even said hello, which is very rare. So, I was like I wanna go out and see how nice you’re myself.”

Namjoon tried thinking of where that could have been, he doesn’t remember. He had always spoken to everyone in that manner so nothing in particular stood out for him.

“Well, so I decided I’ll drop by once you guys are almost done with food to ask you if you need anything else but I guess the meeting went sour, I came and talked but you wouldn’t even look at me. You still replied nicely, were very warm with your words but you wouldn’t look up and I… I thought it was just my bad day. So, yeah, we’ve met before.”

“I’m so sorry, I don’t remember,” Namjoon said and hung his head low.

“It’s okay, it wasn’t like we both were trying or anything, I just saw you there and then when I saw you here, I was surprised.”

Namjoon kept his head down. There was something clearly on his mind and Seokjin wasn’t sure what else to say.

“Please, tell me if I ever cross a line,” Namjoon said instead. He still wouldn’t look up. Seokjin took another step towards him. “I would never want things to go weird or awkward between us,” Namjoon added.

Seokjin smiled but Namjoon couldn’t see it, he took another step forward and stood between Namjoon’s legs. Seokjin placed his hands lightly on Namjoon’s head and ruffled his hair. He leaned down to kiss his hair. Then Seokjin moved his hands to Namjoon’s face and squeezed his cheeks.

“Two weirdos can’t make things weird between them. You pray that you never cross a line and I pray that there’s never a line,” Seokjin said and bopped his nose. He moved back and the look of surprise rested on Namjoon’s face.

“I… I can… I never know what you’ll say,” Namjoon said.

“It’ll take time but you’ll learn,” Seokjin smiled.

“I guess I’ll just have to spend more time with you to learn it,” Namjoon teased and stood up.

“Now you’re learning,” Seokjin laughed. Yoongi called within seconds and told them he was right outside, that he had something important he wanted to discuss with Namjoon before they visit Jeongguk.

“I’ll get your coat, you take care of your hand,” Seokjin said as he noticed Namjoon reaching for his coat. Seokjin made Namjoon wear the coat very slowly, patiently and it just made Namjoon smile.

“What? Why are you smiling like that?” Seokjin asked.

“I shouldn’t say it, it’ll sound so weird,” Namjoon said shyly.

“Say it, I wanna hear it.”

“All of it feels so domestic, like, you’re taking care of me because I’m injured and you made me breakfast and now, you’re helping me dress up,” Namjoon replied and he feel a brush forming.

“You can make me breakfast someday then,” Seokjin said.

“I’ll probably burn the whole kitchen down,” Namjoon replied.

“I’ll assist you.” Seokjin made Namjoon feel a lot of things he has never felt before, he was always busy with work and responsibilities. With Seokjin, it felt like there was more to life than the money he earned or the office hours, with Seokjin, it felt like weekends are truly not meant for work and weekends are meant for people to stay in their pajamas, to cook with each other, to feed each other, to live and to laugh. And those were some things he has never experienced before.

“I should get going,” Namjoon said. He could feel Yoongi’s anger from the car outside.

“I’ll walk you out,” Seokjin said and took a coat for himself as well.

“You’ll catch a cold, you don’t have to,” Namjoon said as they both walked out of Seokjin’s room.

“I’m not as sensitive as you’re, I’ll be fine,” Seokjin said and wrapped his hands tightly around his coated body.

“But you’ve never tested my sensitivity,” Namjoon said and pressed his lips. He tried, he could never be at Seokjin’s level but he tried. The expression Seokjin gave afterwards was worth it though. Seokjin’s jaw dropped, his eyes wide, he looked at Namjoon just such astonished expression. He opened and closed his mouth without uttering a word. That just made Namjoon laugh.

“Wow, Kim Namjoon, wow, now I see how you feel,” Seokjin said and shook his head. He was truly taken by surprise. Seokjin was about to open the front door when Namjoon stop him.

“I… I think… I can go from here. Thank you for today, and last night, even though I was medicated I still had a great time, thank you again,” Namjoon blurred it all out in one go and then leaned forward to plant a small kiss on Seokjin’s cheeks. Namjoon, in the rush of the moment, opened the front door and stepped outside. Seokjin stood by the door, baffled.

“Wait, no, wait,” Seokjin yelled from the door before Yoongi could start driving. Seokjin kept his eyes straight on Yoongi.

“Have lunch on time, don’t get too occupied with work, Taehyung and you guys need to eat,” Seokjin said, he still wouldn’t look at Namjoon.

“Also, take care of him,” Seokjin said and moved his face towards Namjoon without looking at him, Yoongi turned towards Namjoon in confusion but looked back at Seokjin. “He injured himself, his right arm is hurt, he can’t move it much-”

“I’m fine, honestly,” Namjoon interrupted but Seokjin kept talking, “So make sure he isn’t doing a lot with his hand, his arm should be okay in a few days but still if it hurts a lot, take him to the hospital.”

Yoongi gave him a nod on that, made a mental note to ask Namjoon later. Seokjin stepped back and watched as the car hit the rood.

 

Taehyung woke up to an empty bed. He twisted and turned but he couldn’t get anymore sleep. It wasn’t too late or too early, it was ten in the morning.

“Jeongguk… Jeongguk,” Taehyung yelled from the bed. He turned to face the door so he could see Jeongguk walk in.

“Jeon Jeongguk, get your ass here,” Taehyung yelled again and then he heard the footsteps. Taehyung giggled, Jeongguk was actually running.

“Is everything okay?” Jeongguk said in a panicked voice as soon as he entered the room. He kneeled down in front of the bed to get a better view of Taehyung.

“No,” Taehyung pouted. Jeongguk placed his hand on Taehyung’s head to check his temperature.

“Are you feverish? Are you not feeling well? Do you want me to call a doctor?” Jeongguk asked worriedly.

“Hmmm,” Taehyung whined. “Check here,” Taehyung said and pulled Jeongguk’s hand down to his neck, Jeongguk pressed lightly to check the pulse, then turned his hand over to check to temperature again. He was still confused, Taehyung felt normal, his body temperature felt fine for someone who has just woken up.

“Maybe here,” Taehyung said and slid Jeongguk’s hand down his shirt and that’s when it hit Jeongguk.

“You asshole, I honestly thought you weren’t well,” Jeongguk almost screamed over the smile on his face, he buried his head in the bed and pulled back his hand from Taehyung’s grip. Taehyung just laughed loudly, rolled around the bed and kept laughing. Jeongguk really looked concerned and as much pleasure as it gave Taehyung, he couldn’t stop laughing at how betrayed Jeongguk looked when he found out that Taehyung was just playing.

Jeongguk stood up and started walking out. “Wait, no, where are you going?” Taehyung yelled from the bed. “Come back, Jack, come back,” Taehyung enacted the scene from Titanic, his voice almost choky and his words a murmur.

Jeongguk wouldn’t look back, he just smiled and went to the kitchen where Taehyung joined him soon after.

“Oh, we’re having toasts?” Taehyung said when he saw the bread and butter spread out in the kitchen.

“I don’t know what else to make, so, that’s what we’re having,” Jeongguk replied and then he looked back at Taehyung. Jeongguk was in his tracksuit pajamas, and a plain white t-shirt, whereas Taehyung was still in Jeongguk’s shirt and Jeongguk prayed for a boxer underneath that shirt.

“Go change, you’ll catch a cold,” Jeongguk said much for himself and less for Taehyung.

“I’m fine, your house is a little hot anyway,” Taehyung said and looked back at Jeongguk and that was when he realized that the boy was distracted. Taehyung smirked as he took a step in Jeongguk’s direction.

“Are my legs bothering you?” Taehyung said when he caught Jeongguk’s eyes on them.

“What? No, no no, but you should probably change, it’s not good for your health,” Jeongguk said in a very small voice. Taehyung smirked again and went to stand next to Jeongguk, who moved the second Taehyung appeared. Jeongguk went to the refrigerator and started rearranging the things in hopes of making him look like he was doing something.

“But you’re totally fine with it, right? You’re just concerned about my health?” Taehyung teased.

“Yes,” Jeongguk said sharply. Jeongguk stopped moving when he felt Taehyung behind him, then he made a mistake, closed the refrigerator and turned around. They both stood face to face, Taehyung look a step to make sure they were just inches part.

“So, I’m not a distraction to you?” Taehyung said in a low heavy voice. Jeongguk froze, he made a fist with his hand in order to control himself. Taehyung was breathtaking.

“Answer me,” Taehyung demanded with a smirk. Jeongguk swallowed. “No,” Jeongguk whispered.

“Me in your clothes is not a turn on for you?” Taehyung asked again and this time Jeongguk’s eyes turned big, mouth a little open. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

“Don’t make me repeat myself,” Taehyung’s voice was commanding and it did something to Jeongguk. “No,” Jeongguk answered.

“Your pupils blown has nothing to do with me?” Taehyung said and took another step so their chests were flushed together. Jeongguk couldn’t move. He has never seen this side of Taehyung before. This commanding side, he looked like the person who would take what he wants and knows all the ways to do so. But fun fact was that Jeongguk would give everything to Taehyung in a heartbeat, all he had to do was say the words.

Then Jeongguk’s cellphone rang, it startled the both of them, made Taehyung jump in spot. Jeongguk thanked all the higher powers as he reached for the phone.

“I swear to God, if it’s Yoongi or Namjoon, I would- I… it’s always your friends’ cock-blocking us,” Taehyung said as he rushed towards the phone as well.

It was Namjoon.

“Namjoon, hi,” Jeongguk said excitedly and then cleared his throat. His voice was still a little shaky. Moments like those, Jeongguk just under Taehyung, Jeongguk with his puppy eyes, Jeongguk as soft as ever, it hits Taehyung that Jeongguk is younger than him. That no matter what position they’re stuck in, Taehyung is older than him. Moment like those reflects on Jeongguk’s true innocence and are the times when Jeongguk wasn’t trying to empower everyone in the room. Moment like those it makes Taehyung just want to hold Jeongguk and cuddle him to sleep.

“We’re on our way, is Taehyung okay?” Namjoon asked.

“Taehyung? Yeah, yeah he’s fine,” Jeongguk said and looked at Taehyung who was munching on his toast as if nothing happened.

“Fine? I’m hella fine,” Taehyung yelled over with a full mouth, “You tell him, my boy.”

Jeongguk started laughing. “He’s good, when are you reaching?” Jeongguk asked.

“Next ten minutes or so, we’re evening bringing lunch so you don’t have to worry about anything else. And there’s a lot to discuss.” They talked a few more minutes and then Jeongguk realized something.

“Namjoon, are you bringing some of Taehyung’s clothes?” Jeongguk asked and Taehyung practically chocked on his toast, he coughed and laughed and then rolled his eyes as he went to Jeongguk’s bedroom.

“Oh, I completely forgot, I should have. He can wear something of yours for the time being.” As if that wasn’t the problem, Jeongguk thought.

They soon hung up and Taehyung dared not to enter his own bedroom. He roamed around the house, arranging few things and cleaning up the kitchen. Soon, Yoongi and Namjoon arrived.

Taehyung came out of the room wearing a very loose black t-shirt of Jeongguk’s and a black and red ironman pajama. Jeongguk cursed internally.

“I’ll keep all the food in the fridge, let me know when you guys need it, we’ll eat it again,” Namjoon said, very unaware of the tension between Taehyung and Jeongguk.

“Let’s just sit down for business, I don’t have a lot of time,” Yoongi said and they all got into the living room. Jeongguk’s house wasn’t big, it wasn’t his own, just something the company has given him.

“Taehyung, I think you should sit in the room till we talk it all out,” Yoongi said.

“What? No, I wanna be here, I wanna know what’s going on,” Taehyung replied defensively.

“I don’t know how much you need to know, we’ll discuss and we’ll let you know all the details that you need to know about,” Namjoon said.

“I’m not moving, you talk in front of me. It’s all happening to me and I need to know everything you guys know and maybe I can help you out as well.”

They all sat in silence for a second but then decided to just continue with Taehyung.

“I surveyed all the CCTV footage but except for that one person walking up towards the terrace, there’s nothing else. What’s concerning is that the person knew of all the blind spots, he knew where the cameras are. And he wore a mask for majority of the time? Whose idea were the masks?” Yoongi was furious.

“Jimin’s,” Taehyung said with his head hung low.

“And how gave him permission?” Yoongi asked Taehyung and Taehyung kept quiet.

“This is the mess we wanted to avoid, you guys wanna do everything your way and you guys don’t pay any attention to us. Namjoon strictly told you guys to stick to what has been approved and yet there were ten more people on the venue, things were added without permission. Namjoon had to constantly ask for the names of the people from the party and yet we only received that list this morning. I don’t know how to make you more serious about all of it? Your life is at stake,” Yoongi tried his best not to yell but his pitch was already high.

Jeongguk noticed the uneasiness in Taehyung and he chose to speak for him, “Yoongi, calm down and don’t yell at Taehyung.”

“Jeongguk, you should-” Before Yoongi could complete Taehyung spoke up, “You’re right. I’m sorry. On behalf of Jimin, Hoseok and Seokjin.” Taehyung’s face was still hung low and the posture made Yoongi feel guilty for just a second, but he knew this was needed. That they need to understand just how serious everything was.

“I guess, we just never understood how serious everything was. The truth is, my dad never spoke to me about any of it. I never felt threatened because I was never in direct contact. You guys refused to tell us anything expect for that some pictures were involved and someone has been in my house, which in itself is scary but none of it felt that realistic. Yes, me having you people supervise my every move was a bit overwhelming and just for my birthday, we all wanted to feel free and all of it backfired. I’m really sorry. We should have been more careful,” Taehyung apologized.

Namjoon cleared his throat to ease the tension. “What’s done has been done, we can only focus on what’s need to be done now. If it’s fine with you, I would wanna call Jimin and Hoseok here as well. We can talk about some people from the party and we can see what we have from all our background checks.” Taehyung nodded at that suggestion.

Yoongi still looked a bit irritated and on the edge, he also looked like he had little to no sleep last night. Namjoon offered him water but instead he went to get himself some coffee.

“They’ll be here in about half an hour,” Taehyung announced.

“Okay, now, I want you to be really honest with me,” Namjoon turned towards Taehyung.

“You have to tell us everything, any scandal you have had, anyone you doubt could be behind this. People you’ve dated, slept with, even if they’re just one night stands, any friend with benefits. Anyone who’s after you, for money or sex or both. Anyone you’ve rejected and who hasn’t taken it all well. Anyone suspicious,” Namjoon said.

They all turned to look at Taehyung, Taehyung just once turned towards Jeongguk before he started speaking, “I haven’t dated a lot of people but all my exes are now living overseas and we all broke up on mutual-good terms. I haven’t spoken to them in years. So, it can’t be them. There have been few of my clients who have asked me out but I’ve told them I don’t date my clients instead of bluntly rejecting them and they all have taken it well. None of the people I hang out with have had any kind of romantic interest in me. I can’t tell if people are after my money because no one has bluntly asked me for money yet. I always choose to offer, some deny and some take it.”

“Tell me a little bit more on Jimin,” Yoongi offered and Jeongguk went on alert.

“What? Jimin? Our Park Jimin? Don’t tell me you’re suspecting him,” Taehyung gave out a dry laugh.

“Just tell me about him,” Yoongi said again and Jeongguk shook his head.

“I’ve known him for ages, he’s my best friend. We call each other soulmates, he would never ever do anything to hurt me. He and I have the same group of people we hang out with. There’s no way in hell he’s involved,” Taehyung got defensive.

“Taehyung, please, don’t get upset,” Jeongguk said softly.

“Don’t get upset? How would you feel if I told you I suspect that Yoongi is after your life and has ill intentions for you?” Taehyung asked angrily.

“Then he would hear your explanation out, hear what you have to say and why you suspect so,” Yoongi answered instead.

“Oh, is that it? So, you tell me why this question was raised? Why are you suspicious of Jimin?” Taehyung asked. His throat was a bit dry now. He was angry.

“You wanna tell him?” Yoongi asked Jeongguk.

“I don’t think we should bring it up now, we can wait till we find something else,” Jeongguk said.

“I’ll say it then,” Yoongi said and turned towards Taehyung. “Jeongguk saw Jimin in your room late at night, clicking a picture of you while you were sleeping. Just before your birthday.”

“You mean a few days back?” Taehyung asked and Yoongi nodded. That made Taehyung laugh.

“There’s a huge misunderstanding,” Taehyung laughed again. “Oh my God, you guys got worried over that.”

Yoongi just looked over at Namjoon and Jeongguk, who looked equally confused.

“It’s crazy, it’s this stupid birthday tradition kind of a thingie. Like, it’s been happening for five years now. Jimin always clicks a picture of me when I’m sleeping and he makes this huge birthday card of it, he once made a poster and posted it all over my house. He clicks pictures all day long just to post them on my birthday,” Taehyung said and laugh. Yoongi still had a straight face.

“So, that settles it?” Namjoon said with uncertainty.

“I guess so,” Jeongguk replied.

“Anything else you wanna know, Yoongi? Because I feel like this whole thing has been a huge misunderstanding,” Taehyung said and smiled.

Yoongi just shook his head. They all chatted for a few seconds before Seokjin, Jimin arrived with Hoseok. The house felt full again, wild and loud.

“Tae, I got you some new clothes,” Jimin yelled as he rushed to give Taehyung a hug and Jeongguk thanked all his stars. Taehyung turned towards Jeongguk and pouted at him, Jeongguk stuck out his tongue in hopes of no one noticing.

“Did you guys have lunch?” Seokjin asked. He still couldn’t look at Namjoon even though he told himself multiple times that he himself has kissed Namjoon’s forehead a few times.

“We were about to,” Jeongguk said guiltily.

“I’ll get it for your guys, you guys are useless,” Seokjin said and started making his way towards the kitchen, “Hoseok, come help me out,” he added.

“I’ll do it, you can rest,” Yoongi stood up abruptly. “Jeongguk come with me.”

They both made their way towards the kitchen and Seokjin went back to the boys. Hoseok was awfully quiet, Yoongi noticed.

“What’s on your mind?” Jeongguk asked as soon as they were alone. Yoongi started getting the plates and bowls whereas Jeongguk started heating the food.

“Something doesn’t add up,” Yoongi said.

“About what?”

“Jimin,” Yoongi said. “You know how Taehyung said that Jimin always takes random pictures of whenever he’s sleeping, that part was fine. What’s weird is that I got into Jimin’s phone,” Yoongi mentioned.

“You hacked his phone?” Jeongguk asked in a low whisper.

“I didn’t hack it, I did my job. I was up all night just doing some research and when I couldn’t find anything on the surveillance, I looked into his phone because of what you told me. His messages aren’t suspicious, same group of people Taehyung mentioned. And I didn’t read much because that felt wrong but I noticed something.”

Jeongguk looked back at the group just to make sure no one was paying attention.

“To make my work easy, Jimin actually has a folder named ‘Sleeping Taehyung’ in his phone. The pictures that were sent to Mr. Kim are the same picture on Jimin’s phone. Jimin has about eighteen pictures and out of those, till date, Mr. Kim has received five picture and all of those pictures are present in Jimin’s phone,” Yoongi explained.

Jeongguk wasn’t sure if he heard him right. It made no sense.

“Another weird thing,” Yoongi wasn’t finished. “The pictures sent to Mr. Kim are in random order. They’re not sent chronologically. The first one he received was taken three months back and the second one he received was taken two years back. I just think Jimin is more involved than he leads on,” Yoongi finished.

“But Taehyung is so sure it can’t be him,” Jeongguk said.

“Of course, he is. And we have to continue it that way. If Taehyung starts believing that Jimin is involved and he started acting off towards Jimin, Jimin will notice and we don’t know what that will lead to. Jimin is too unpredictable.” Yoongi recleaned all the plates just to buy them some more time.

“That just means there are more than one person involved if we place our figure on Jimin. Because you and Namjoon clearly ran towards someone at that building,” Jeongguk mentioned.

“True. Either the person was hired or he’s involved in all the planning. I just… I don’t have a good feeling about this all. It’s like someone’s so close yet we can’t figure it out.”

“Could be Hoseok as well,” Jeongguk said and he had Yoongi’s full attention. “Did you check his phone as well?” Jeongguk asked.

Now, Yoongi wasn’t sure how to address that, he wanted to get into Hoseok’s phone just because of his professional reasons but all of it felt too personal. He was ready to dig in but he just couldn’t do it at the end.

“I don’t think he’s involved. Nothing leads to him,” Yoongi said confidently. “I’ll let Namjoon check his phone but when we first did the background checks, Hoseok wasn’t suspicious at all. His schedule is fixed. Classes, dance and on weekends he visits his sister or spends the time at Taehyung’s place. Lately he’s started getting into music as well and has an addition class for it. His Schedule doesn’t allow him to have the time to plan anything.”

“How long were you up last night? Did you get enough sleep?” Jeongguk asked instead.

“I’m fine, yeah,” Yoongi said and walked towards the living room. There was nothing left to discuss.

They all sat down and ate, talked about random things. Made sure no one mentioned the party or Taehyung’s birthday. Jeongguk would steal glances at Taehyung. Taehyung was talkative even when he ate, his mouth full but he had to complete what he was saying.

Jeongguk’s t-shirt was a little too big on Taehyung. Even though they’re almost of the same height, their built was different. At home, Jeongguk referred to wear clothes that are loose and right that moment Taehyung was in one of those clothes. A round neck oversized t shirt which would, every now and then, leave Taehyung’s shoulders exposed. Jeongguk would always try his best to look away.

As soon as they were done eating Yoongi started laying down pictures of everyone that was at the part. There was a total of sixty people, excluding the seven of them.

“I want you guys to take up a pen and write down the name and relationship of theirs with you on the back of it,” Yoongi said. “That means, just divide the back of it in three sections and right down accordingly. Also, mention how long have you known them.”

“Do we have to do it now? We just ate?” Jimin said in agony.

“Yes, I don’t have the whole day, I have to leave soon,” Yoongi said and looked at his watch. It was already five in the evening and he wanted to be out by six.

“So, you’re saying you don’t have time for your own job?” That was the first time Hoseok spoke that day. Everyone turned to look at Hoseok, everyone speechless.

“Woh-woh there,” Seokjin laughed nervously. “Let’s just complete it fast so we can all be free soon.”

Yoongi just looked at Hoseok and Hoseok refused to backdown.

“Next time, stick to guidelines we give you, don’t go overboard and do things without permission,” Yoongi said irritated.

“Don’t speak to us like we’re your slaves,” Hoseok said and Seokjin slapped his hand.

“What’s happening with you?” Seokjin wasn’t having it.

“He has been cranky since last night. He didn’t even sleep good, I found him on the sofa zooned out with the TV on in the background. He wouldn’t talk to me, try your luck,” Jimin said even when Hoseok kicked his leg.

“He’s also living on coffee, has had about four cups in the morning,” Jimin added and moved over to sit beside Taehyung instead.

“He’s just being dramatic,” Hoseok said.

“I’m being dramatic? You yelled at me in the morning because you forgot to put your alarm on and got late for your class,” Jimin said in his defense and Hoseok just rolled his eyes.

“Hey hey, we are not gonna fight here, okay, Hobi, do you wanna talk about it?” Seokjin asked quietly and Hoseok shook his head in a no.

“Well, then maybe soon. Why don’t you stay over at my place tonight? I’ll anyways be alone,” Seokjin asked and Hoseok said he has classes.

“I’ll be with you Jinnie, you don’t have to be alone,” Taehyung said to cheer up Seokjin.

“You’re still staying with Jeongguk,” Namjoon said. “Your room’s window needs to be changed and we have to go over some security check at your place, so, you can’t be in that house for a couple of days.”

“What about Seokjin? If I’m not safe there, how’ll he be?” Taehyung asked and everyone went quiet. Namjoon wanted to offer to stay over again but Seokjin hasn’t look over at him since he came here. Namjoon hated himself.

“I’ll stay with Seokjin, or he can come over at my place. There are few more guards over at the place anyway so even if I stay in with Seokjin, that’ll be fine and he’ll not be alone as well,” Jimin offered and everyone nodded. Namjoon looked away.

“Can we focus on one thing first? Get this thing done, I have to leave,” Yoongi said.

“Then why don’t you run out of the house like you always do?” Hoseok’s voice sounded angry and this time when every one turned to look at Hoseok, he knew he crossed a line.

“That’s it, I’ve had enough,” Jimin said and stood up. “You two,” He pointed at Hoseok and Yoongi, “Talk. I don’t know what? But just sort this shit out. I can’t handle this mess anymore, we already have a lot of things to take care of.”

Jimin was pissed off and Namjoon and Jeongguk were surprised, no one has ever seen Jimin like that before.

“All of us are doing for a walk, you have half an hour max, and when we get back, we don’t want this taunting tension in the room,” Jimin’s voice was louder than before and everyone stood up except for Hoseok and Yoongi. Everyone left the apartment but Hoseok and Yoongi wouldn’t look at each other.

Ten minutes passed and no one of them spoke. Hoseok gave out a dry laugh after that, “Jimin’s too naive to think you’ll talk to me.”

“Hoseok, don’t make it difficult,” Yoongi said softly.

“Difficult?” Hoseok laughed again. “So, I’m the one making it difficult for us?”

“I don’t know what you want from me,” Yoongi said, his head still hung low.

“Oh, so you don’t? Let me make it clear for you. I wanna know what’s happening?” Hoseok’s voice was louder that before.

“Taehyung has a stalker and-”

“Don’t play dumb with me Yoongi, you know what I mean, I wanna know what’s happening between us?” Hoseok said and the ‘us’ came out a lot softer than he wanted it to be.

“There is no us, nothing is happening between us,” Yoongi said quietly.

“Oh, so, you go around kissing everyone you meet?” Hoseok said harshly and Yoongi looked up. He avoided looking at Hoseok for the reason that Hoseok makes him weak, Hoseok’s face was so painful to watch for Yoongi he would rather be on the field surrounded by enemies.

Hoseok looked so angry and yet so sad, his face looked like he was on the verge of crying but he couldn’t because then there was no one in the room who would offer him a shoulder to cry on. That fact alone, made Yoongi’s chest hurt.

“Don’t act like you didn’t kiss me?” Yoongi said instead. Hoseok laughed again.

“I wanted to kiss you, I felt like you wanted to kiss me too, I thought there was something between us. That’s why I kissed you. But can you answer why you kissed me?” Hoseok asked.

Yoongi wanted to say a lot of things. Wanted to yell at Hoseok for making Yoongi’s heart beat a little faster every time he would look at him. Wanted to scream at Hoseok for having a laugh that made it seem like no one in the world can hurt Yoongi if he’s around Hoseok. Yoongi wanted to say how the dancer has been on his mind since the day he laid eyes on him. How he only kissed Hoseok because, for once in a really long time, it felt right. He felt like he was wanted and needed.

But instead, he stayed quiet.

“Are you gonna act like you never kissed me?” Hoseok asked. Yoongi stayed quiet.

“Are you gonna act like it’s all in my head?” Hoseok asked. Yoongi stayed quiet.

“I’m leaving,” Yoongi said and stood up. Hoseok laughed again.

“When are you not?” Hoseok said.

“Tell them I went home,” Yoongi said in a dull voice.

“Yoongi, if this is how you actually treat people, no wonder you’re alone.” Were the last words Yoongi heard from Hoseok before he left for his place.

Everyone came back about ten minutes later.

“If you guys are still fighting-” Seokjin stopped midsentence, “Where’s Yoongi?” He asked.

“He said something came up and he left,” Hoseok lied. They all stayed over for a bit longer, Seokjin forced everyone to stay for dinner and also forbid Namjoon from entering kitchen when he almost burned the noodles.

Once they all were done with dinner they went outside.

“I can drop you guys,” Namjoon offered Seokjin and Jimin.

“Oh, no problem, I brought my car, it’s fine. Thank you,” Jimin replied with a smile and Seokjin went to sit in the car.

“Take care, okay. If you guys need anything just give me a call,” Namjoon said to Jimin. He wasn’t sure if Seokjin was approachable. He wasn’t sure if he could go talk to him.

“Sure, you’ll be the first on my speed dial.” After a few seconds Namjoon waved them off. Hoseok left soon after. Namjoon turned towards Jeongguk and Taehyung already went instead.

“I have everything with me, they placed the names and relationships. I’ll see what I can find. Yoongi dropped a few messages as well, I’ll check on them too. You just take care of Taehyung. Remind him to call his parents, they called me today. Also,” Namjoon hesitated before he spoke again, “Be careful.”

“It’s not-” Jeongguk started but stopped. There wasn’t anything he could say.

“I know you like him, it’s very… visible. Just, don’t let it get into your professional life. Don’t let it affect your work or your judgement. You’re protective of him, even when Yoongi was being hard on him, which was needed, the four of them are taking thing a little too lightly, but the point is, when Yoongi was a bit harsh you made sure he was okay. Just, be careful, okay?” Namjoon said and Jeongguk gave him a nod and a shy smile.

Jeongguk went back inside to a surprise.

“Why are you doing it?” Jeongguk said and closed the main door.

“Doing what?” Taehyung said casually. As if nothing has happened.

“Why are you wearing my clothes again?” Jeongguk said over his smile.

“Oh? That. They’re very comfortable. Maybe I should go shopping with you,” Taehyung said and twirled, as if there was anything to see.

“Just go change into yours, Jimin got you like thirty pairs for only two days.”

“This is more comfortable, does my comfort means nothing to you?” Taehyung teased.

“I’m very possessive over my clothes, now go change.”

“Oh, so you’re the possessive kind?” Taehyung winked. “Are you possessive over your people as well?” Taehyung asked in a low seductive voice and Jeongguk knew better than to fall for it.

Jeongguk said nothing and went in the kitchen to get himself some water, his throat felt dry.

“Jeongguk? Can I ask you something?” Taehyung’s voice was really small, like that of a kid’s.

“Yeah,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung went to sit on the kitchen counter.

“Do you think I’m good looking?” Taehyung asked and played with the hem of the t shirt he was wearing.

“What? What do you mean?” Jeongguk looked at him with a confused expression.

“Do you think I’m pretty? Beautiful? Hot? Sexy? Cute? Good looking? Handsome?” Taehyung tried to elaborate.

“What’s that supposed to mean? What kind of a question is this?” Jeongguk asked nervously. He wasn’t sure where Taehyung was going with this. He wasn’t sure why the most beautiful man he ever laid eyes on, would ask him if he was beautiful?

“A simple one. How else do you want me to elaborate it,” Taehyung said. “Do you know many people, within a year, have called me beautiful or handsome or pretty?” Taehyung asked but he wasn’t expecting any reply from Jeongguk.

“Three,” Taehyung replied. “And do you know how many people have said ‘Oh, you’re very pretty, beautiful but you must hear that a lot.’?” Taehyung asked and his face dropped down again.

“Taehyung,” Jeongguk said with a heavy breath.

“I just… I mean… yeah, I know, I do know I look nice, I know how to work my look, I know all that. But no one seems to say it because they feel like I already know it or hear it a lot,” Taehyung said quietly.

Jeongguk walked towards him, he wasn’t sure what to do next. Taehyung’s posture looked low. His hands on the counter and his legs won’t reach the ground.

“You’re beautiful,” Jeongguk said in a whisper.

“Now, don’t say it because it seems like I’m forcing you,” Taehyung laughed and looked up and Jeongguk walked another step in his direction.

“I’m not, I have never said it because… I don’t know… it just… never felt professional. Like, what good was it gonna do if I told you I think you’re pretty?” Jeongguk sounded really nervous and Taehyung laughed.

“Oh, so you think I’m pretty as well? Maybe a little delicate too?” Taehyung teased and Jeongguk gave out a nervous laugh.

“Come here,” Taehyung said and pulled Jeongguk between his legs. Because he was on the counter, it gave him an advantage over height. He could lean down on Jeongguk and so he did. Jeongguk looked up. The height different wasn’t much, Jeongguk just had to stretch his neck a few inches but that just made his swallow a little more prominent. His Adam’s apple a little more out there.

“You think I’m beautiful and pretty? What else?” Taehyung smiled at Jeongguk. Their hands to themselves.

“Do you have a praise kink?” Jeongguk tried making a joke to make the situation filled less with sexual tension.

“What if I do? You gonna back out now?” Taehyung asked and Jeongguk’s smile went wider.

“You know, people say Seokjin is the most beautiful,” Taehyung mentioned. It was true though. Seokjin’s beauty was undeniable.

“Taehyung,” Jeongguk whined, “Please don’t take other people’s name right now.”

“Other people? It’s our Seokjin,” Taehyung almost felt offended.

“I can’t believe I was about to kiss you,” Jeongguk said and looked straight at Taehyung. Jeongguk’s hand on both side of Taehyung now.

“You were about to kiss me?” Taehyung repeated.

“Till you mentioned your brother,” Jeongguk said. They both were speaking in a low voice now. Taehyung could feel the heat rise in his body.

“Don’t play with me, Jeongguk. I’ll take it seriously,” Taehyung still gave Jeongguk a way out. If it was a joke, he wanted him to be over with it.

“I… I want you,” Jeongguk said, his eyes fixed on Taehyung, “to take it seriously,” he later added.

Taehyung felt light, he couldn’t look away from Jeongguk. This was the first time ever, when Jeongguk was so upfront with what he wanted.

“Jeongguk, are you sure?” Taehyung asked one last time and Jeongguk just leaned up.

Jeongguk’s cellphone rang. Universe laughed and all the higher power trolled them. Taehyung and Jeongguk thought it would be easy.

“Jeongguk, I swear to God, if it’s one of your friends, it’s always your friend,” Taehyung yelled out of frustration, Jeongguk slid out from between Taehyung’s legs to reach for his phone.

“Ha, it’s Hoseok this time,” Jeongguk said and before he could press the answer button Taehyung snatched the phone and put it on silent. He then held Jeongguk’s neck and pulled him in.

If you were to ask Jeongguk how he imagined his first kiss with Taehyung would be, he would have just laughed and walked away. If you were to ask the same question to Taehyung, he would have said something romantic. None of them would have said that their first kiss would be held by a time limit on it.

Taehyung went in lightly at first, his lips pressed Jeongguk’s and he took a deep breath. Jeongguk moved his left hand and placed it around Taehyung’s hips and his left hand at the center of Taehyung’s back and he pulled him closer. Taehyung’s both hands were wrapped around Jeongguk’s neck. Jeongguk moved his lips first and Taehyung smiled in the kiss. His heart no more scared, his actions spoke faster. He pulled Jeongguk closer and ran his hands through Jeongguk’s hair and with a slight pressure he pulled Jeongguk’s hair, Jeongguk let out a moan in Taehyung’s mouth. Taehyung smiled even harder in the kiss.

The second time the phone ran they both pulled back. Taehyung wouldn’t stop looking at Jeongguk and Jeongguk was too shy to look at Taehyung. No matter how much of tough personality he gave out, he was always shy under Taehyung’s spell.

Jeongguk’s heartbeat was still high and he took a deep breath before he picked up his phone and that was when he realized that this time it was Taehyung’s phone.

He stretched his arm to reach for Taehyung’s phone and handed it to Taehyung. Taehyung cleared his voice before he picked up.

“Hobi,” Taehyung smiled as he said that and Jeongguk shook his head with a smile.

“Where’s Jeongguk?” Hoseok said in a very serious tone.

“Jeongguk? He’s with me, why? Is everything okay?” Taehyung panicked a little.

“Yeah, just give him the phone for me,” Hoseok said and Taehyung passed his phone to Jeongguk.

“Hoseok, do you want me to come?” Jeongguk said as soon as he received the call.

“No, just… can you?... can you give me… Yoongi’s address?” Hoseok asked. His voice sounded nervous and he sounded like he was in pain.

“Hoseok? Is everything okay? Do you want me to send someone over? Are you safe?” Jeongguk asked instead and Taehyung walked towards him in panic. He felt guilty for not picking up Hoseok’s call at the first time.

“Yes, I’m fine. I’m home, just can you do it or not?” Hoseok asked again and this time he sounded frustrated.

“What do you need it for?” Jeongguk asked.

“I had to tell him something about the party,” Hoseok said and by then Taehyung had made Jeongguk put the phone on speaker.

“You can tell me,” Jeongguk said instead.

“I would have told you if I wanted to, now, can you give me the address or do you want me to call Namjoon?” Hoseok was on the verge of yelling and Taehyung was confused.

“Hoseok, it’s ten at night, don’t you think it’s a little too late to drop by at someone’s place?” Jeongguk said quietly and slowly.

“I’ll go tomorrow morning, just give me the address and if you can’t, then just tell me.”

“I’ll give you, but you have to promise me that you’ll go tomorrow.”

“Just give me the address now,” Hoseok said and then he added a very vulnerable, “Please.”

Jeongguk gave him the address and as soon as they hung up Taehyung turned and said, “He’s already on his way.”

Hoseok truly was. He was angry and he was pissed. He was tired of crying for no reason. He wanted answers and this time he was certain that he would get them. He wouldn’t leave till Yoongi would ask him to.

He wanted to know what the hell was going on, he wanted to know if they actually never have a chance. He wanted to know if he was just wasting his time on Yoongi when all Yoongi’s ever going to be is cold to him.

He always felt guilty and bad for the way he talked to Yoongi that day. He wanted to hurt Yoongi and that was why he spoke few words he never meant but he realized a little too late that hurting Yoongi meant hurting himself.

He was not only there to seek answers but also there to apologize. He stood outside Yoongi’s house for a good ten minutes. Debated if it was actually really late or if it was just something Jeongguk said so he could calm himself down.

The waiting wasn’t going to do him any good so he rang the bell. He waited and waited and then he heard the footsteps.

“Hoseok?” Yoongi’s face was more surprised that Hoseok imagined it would be. Yeah, Hoseok didn’t have his address and that in itself was a surprise for Yoongi to have Hoseok at his door but Hoseok never expected this expression.

“Can we talk?” Hoseok said softly with no venom. He wasn’t here to fight.

“Hoseok?” Yoongi repeated again. And he had a strong hold at the door, blocking Hoseok’s view. He stood by frame which made it impossible for Hoseok to enter.

“I just came-” before Hoseok could outer another word. He heard another pair of footsteps.

Another person stood by Yoongi’s side. Hoseok’s eyes looked up at Yoongi in shock. He never expected this scenario.

“Appa,” the kid clenching to Yoongi’s leg said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, thank you again for reading it and i know it's been a while. But i hope you enjoyed it.  
> Do tell me how you like the story and the chapter.  
> RANT IT OUT TO ME. I JUST WANNA KNOW.  
> thank you again for taking your time to read it.  
> it really means a lot to me.


	7. Chapter 7

Yoongi wanted to sleep, wanted to just curl up in his blanket and sleep. Sleep so that he couldn’t think. Sleep so that his head would stop buzzing. Sleep so that he could stop thinking of Hoseok.

The minute Yoongi got home from Jeongguk’s, he couldn’t stop thinking about Hoseok. What he said and how he looked. Not in the sense that he looked amazing, Hoseok always looked amazing, but in how his expressions were sad, upset, and frustrated.

Yoongi wanted things to be easy. Wanted to be able to explain everything but, things weren’t easy. They were complicated and could easily be misunderstood. Yoongi hated it.

It was almost ten at night and he wasn’t in the mood to fix himself dinner. When he got home, all he had done was to try and not breakdown in tears. He was frustrated.

So, when the doorbell rang a little while after that, he was confused, he wasn’t expecting anyone. It couldn’t be any of his boys, they would always message first.

He stood and walked towards the door, very slowly. When he opened the door, he wasn’t if he was seeing things right. There was no way on earth Jung Hoseok was standing in front of him, he wouldn’t have his address, Yoongi was certain of that just a few seconds ago.

“Hoseok?” Yoongi wasn’t sure if he said it out loud or if his brain was asking him questions. Yoongi wasn’t sure of anything at that moment.

“Can we talk?” Hoseok said in a very calm voice, much to Yoongi’s surprise.

“Hoseok?” Yoongi repeated. He was still trying to wrap his head around all of it.

“I just came-” Hoseok started to say but was interrupted by the little kid that ran towards Yoongi’s leg and called him ‘Appa’,

Hoseok’s mouth hung open, his expression as confused as the whole situation. Yoongi couldn’t let Hoseok leave just yet.

“I… I-” Hoseok couldn’t speak, he couldn’t form any work let alone a sentence, Hoseok had thousands of scenarios in his head, some ended with them in fist fight and some ended with them in bed together, but none of them ended with a kid.

Hoseok took a step back involuntarily, he needed to breathe, this was all just too much. Yoongi saw it as Hoseok leaving, he panicked and held out his hand to hold Hoseok by his wrist.

“Can we talk?” This time it was Yoongi who said that.

They both sat on the opposite sides of Yoongi’s couch. Hoseok wasn’t sure what was needed to be said or done. Yoongi has offered him water and he took it politely. The child sat on Yoongi’s lap.

Now, Hoseok wasn’t much of an expert on kids, the kid looked way too young, about a year or two old. The kid had a very weird haircut, Hoseok could laugh on a good day, but not today. Shorter from the front and longer from the back, Hoseok wanted to call it a mullet but it looked way too messed up to be one.

The kid’s head was on Yoongi’s chest and Yoongi was slightly patting the kid’s back, in a rhythm. The kid looked at Hoseok in silence and Hoseok looked everywhere else, Hoseok was nervous.

“Yeoun.” Came a tiny voice from the kid’s direction.

Hoseok and Yoongi both looked at the kid in a heartbeat. The kid had the hand stretched out towards Hoseok.

Hoseok broke out in a smile, “Hoseok.” He then reached out for the kid’s hand to shake it.

“Hojok,” the kid tried to say it and it made Yoongi smile. Hoseok looked at Yoongi and it was the first time he has seen the man smile in so many days.

“Hose- call me Hobi,” Hoseok said with another smile. He had his body leaned towards the kid, he doesn’t want the kid to be intimidated.

“Hobi?” the kid asked with confusion.

“Yes, Hobi. I let my friends call me Hobi,” Hoseok said and he was trying to relax. It’s just a kid. Kids like friendly people. Kids talk.

“We friends?” Yeoun asked and looked over at Yoongi, as if asking for approval. Yoongi gave Yeoun a little nod.

“Yeah, we’re friend,” Hoseok held out his hand again and Yeoun gave him a clap.

“Yeoun, why don’t you say goodnight to you friend? You’re already way past your bedtime,” Yoongi stood up and took Yeoun in his arms.

“No, but… I want to talk,” Yeoun said and yawned. Yoongi smiled again.

“Maybe next time, okay? You sleep right now, we’ll talk later,” Hoseok stood up to help Yoongi out and Yeoun gave him a nod. They waved goodnight at each other and Yoongi disappeared in one of the rooms. Hoseok got the time to breathe.

He looked around and realized that Yoongi’s house was just a little bigger than Hoseok’s. A wider kitchen space and a wider living room. There were several rooms, from where Hoseok could see. It looked like a house for a bigger family.

Yoongi appeared after a while. “I thought you would be gone by now,” he said to Hoseok.

“Would you have wanted that?” Hoseok asked and crossed his arms.

“No,” he said simply.

Soon the both were in the same position from a while back, opposite ends of the couch.

“So, you said you wanted to talk,” Yoongi said when Hoseok stayed quiet for way too long.

“I’m not sure what to say anymore,” Hoseok replied.

“Why did you come here?” Yoongi asked.

“Do you have someone? Do you have a partner?” Hoseok asked. The question was biting him, eating him up. Ever since he saw the kid, he couldn’t shake the feeling that there might just be someone in Yoongi’s life.

“No, I don’t,” Yoongi said calmly.

“Is the kid yours?” Hoseok asked. He knows way too many stories of young pregnant woman, who don’t want anything to do with the child, so they end up leaving the kid with their partners and vanish for a decade or so.

“It’s more complicated than that,” Yoongi replied after a while, he debated how to answer that and he just couldn’t get the words out.

“Yoongi,” Hoseok said and looked at the elder man, “the kid is either yours or not, it’s not complicated.”

“The kid is mine, yes,” Yoongi said and could see as Hoseok’s shoulders dropped. “By law, she is my child, but not biologically.”

Hoseok looked up at Yoongi again. “She’s adopted?”

“Not exactly, but yes, she’s adopted,” Yoongi replied. The story was too complicated to get into. He prayed that Hoseok wouldn’t ask but knowing Hoseok, it was just the matter of time.

“So, let me get this right, you don’t have someone, you’re single but you do have a kid, not biologically but Yeoun is yours?” Hoseok said and it looked like he was trying to make sense of all that.

“Yes.”

“You don’t strike me as someone with a kid, seeing how much you work and how late you stay up.” Hoseok said.

“I wasn’t, but you gotta do what you gotta do.”

Hoseok was still frustrated. He was more confused than before.

“Yoongi, don’t get me wrong,” Hoseok began and Yoongi looked at him, eyes soft but pained. “Your life is your life, you do want you want with it, but you can’t use your kid as an excuse to mess up someone else’s life. You kissed me and then you won’t talk to me, I get it that you have a kid and that you just can’t involve someone in your life, just like that, but you knew that. Then why kiss me? Why not just tell me it’ll never work out? We haven’t known each other- hell, we don’t even know each other, but I would have liked if I had some clarity on it.”

“I wanted more.” Yoongi’s voice was really low, or maybe too might, no one was sure at that point, Hoseok’s heartbeat was already high, he wasn’t sure if he was even hearing words over his heartbeat ringing in his ear.

“What?”

“I’ve had my fair share of one-night stands and within the first few of them, I realized it’s just not for me. I just can’t do the casual sex. Doesn’t mean I don’t miss the feeling of skin on skin, lips on lips. I’ve been to bars, I’ve made out with different people. The difference between them and you is that I never wanted to see those men again, I never wanted anything from them except for their time they gave for that night. I have a kid, I can’t just let anyone be close to me and those men weren’t in any mood to be close to me either, but you weren’t them.” Yoongi stopped and breathed. Took a long breath just to recollect his thoughts. He looked back at Hoseok and Hoseok looked like he was at loss of words.

“I wanted to see you the next day, I wanted to see you more and more, I wanted to know you, I wanted to talked to you, I wanted more with you, Hoseok. I couldn’t let you in because I wanted you. I kissed you that night not because I wanted to have anyone’s lips on mine, but because I wanted to kiss you. I wanted to kiss you, Hoseok. If I wouldn’t have left your place in that exact moment, then I don’t know what would have happened next. I couldn’t risk that. I can’t lead you on and then drop the baby card. I… I just didn’t want things to be casual between us. It’s gonna be painful for a while but I saved us both from heartbreak that it would have caused later.”

Yoongi wanted to continue, wanted to talk more but he already has said more than enough. In his little rant he made his feelings for Hoseok clear. Hoseok on the other hand, was still in shock. They both sat in silence, the clock’s tic-tic the only sound in the living room.

“You know, you pout when you’re talking passionately.” Those were the only words Hoseok thought could think of.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Yoongi took a while with his reply as well.

“Don’t tell me, no one ever told you?” Hoseok teased and Yoongi’s gummy smile broke out.

“You should have said something earlier, it would have been less painful,” Hoseok mentioned after a while. They both were still at the corners of the couch but they looked less on the edge.

“It’s not easy to just say ‘hey, I have a kid,’ and then continue on as if nothing happened,” Yoongi replied.

“Now that I know how whipped you are for me-”

“Stop talking, Hoseok,” Yoongi said shyly, with a bright smile.

“What? It’s true though. You said it yourself,” Hoseok laughed. He was just glad things weren’t awkward between them.

“Anyway, now all I have to do is impress Yeoun, because, as we’ve figured out, you’re already highly impressed by me,” Hoseok said jokingly but Yoongi didn’t laugh.

“Did I say something wrong?” Hoseok asked nervously when he looked at how serious Yoongi looked.

“You still want to be a part of this?” Yoongi asked softly, each word said in a very clear voice.

“If that ends up with us being together, then, yes.” Hoseok was never so sure of anything in his life. Yes, it was just all too much but he has tried to live like Yoongi doesn’t exist. He has tried not to speak to or of Yoongi and that was the hardest he has lived.

“Are you sure?” Yoongi asked again. He wasn’t sure if any of it was making any sense to him or if Hoseok understood what was happening. A kid was involved. Yoongi’s kid was involved.

Hoseok shifted towards Yoongi, there was still space between them but they still were closer than they have been in last few days, “Are you scared she’ll like me better than you?”

“You’re so full of yourself,” Yoongi said and pushed at Hoseok’s shoulders.

They both smiled at each other, a true, genuine smile. Yoongi hasn’t felt this light headed in over a week, since the night he ran from Hoseok’s.

“Tell me about her,” Hoseok said and changed the subject.

“What do you wanna know?” Yoongi has never spoken about her to anyone. The only people who actually knew of all the details are Namjoon and Jeongguk, along with his immediate family. For the rest, he always had ‘I wanted a family and she is it for me,’  ready on his tongue. This worked well with relatives, whenever his parents have forced him to a family get together with all the extended family.

“Anything, what was your reaction when you got to know the adoption papers cleared and all that stuff? How were you sure you wanted a kid?” Hoseok asked. Personally, Hoseok has never thought of having a kid. Down the line, he sure would want a kid but not in the next five to seven years. Yoongi wasn’t much older than him, so, it just grew his curiosity.

“When I first saw her, I hated her parents,” Yoongi said honestly. He has never truly shown any emotions to Namjoon and Jeongguk. Things just happened too fast and there wasn’t much that needed to be said.

“You’ve met the parents?” Hoseok asked.

“I think I have, it’s complicated,” Yoongi said again.

“And I have nowhere to go and all night to listen,” Hoseok said and sat back comfortably, his legs crossed on the couch. He truly made it home.

“Just, ask me to stop if you don’t wanna hear anymore or something,” Yoongi said. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He hasn’t thought of that day in a really long time.

“I was on duty, Namjoon and Jeongguk were with me, right after midnight we all decided to go to those twenty-four hours store and just have dinner and go home. There was this couple just outside the store. They weren't doing much, just hanging around but they looked really supicious. They looked nervous and they looked like they were on the edge. They kept looking in our direction and I didn't think much of it at first. It was at a really small and remote area. Some guy from the government was doing a rally and we were escorting him. Anyway, so, it was the last day. We haven’t slept in over two days. Things were hard and hectic. We finished our dinner and by one or two, after having a few drinks, we decided to head to our hotels.”

Yoongi looked at Hoseok. Something about Hoseok just gets Yoongi on ease.

“When we got out of that store, we realized my car was missing. We thought that I might have parked it somewhere else, because the parking lot was quite big behind that store but we couldn’t find my car, I realized soon after that I must have forgotten to take out the keys of the car. We called the cops to inform them about the missing vehicle but it took them too long to actually register a decent complaint. They kept saying how I should have been more careful and all that crap and I was too exhausted to take their bullshit.”

Yoongi recalled that exact moment, how he stood there feeling stupid, how he thought that the best he could do was go back to his hotel room and just take a nap.

“Anyway, we contacted our head office and they helped us in tracking the car, it was abandoned about fifty miles away and when we reached, the engine of the car was on. I remember Namjoon was the one who went to look inside the car first. We located the car at around six or seven in the morning, I can’t even tell anymore. I still remember the expression on Namjoon’s face. It was like he saw a ghost,” Yoongi said and laughed. He looked over at Hoseok to check if he was still listening.

“There was a child on the backseat, just wrapped in a dirty-torn blanket, I was more concerned for the health of the kid than I was over the kid being there. I thought the parents of the kid accidentally left her there, but who would just leave their child like that. It made no sense to me, we took her to the hospital, but as soon as we entered, she started crying. Louder and louder. The whole hospital filled with her screams. She was barely seven or eight months old. What was truly strange was that she never cried when we were driving her towards the hospital, she was a quiet child and for once, we all were happy.”

“Did you ever locate the parents? Did they visit the hospital?” Hoseok asked, Yoongi could sense hesitation in his voice but he wasn’t sure why it was there.

“Do you want me to tell the story or not?”

“Sorry, I got impatient, continue, please.”

"Her parents... I'm not sure but I think that couple just outside the store, they are her parents. There was just something about them that I could never figure out. I don't remember seeing a child with them but the condition they were in... I'm sure they weren't gonna take care of a kid like that," Yoongi stopped himself. He had no right to judge two random people without much evidence and he, of all the people, knew that but something about those people just never sat well with Yoongi. Something about those poeple just screamed guilt and fear.

“We stayed for over an hour or so, everything was okay with her, she was perfectly fine, good health and all that. The hospital said they’ll contact the police and the child services and all those people who were to be contacted for her and that they’ll take care of her. I… I wasn’t sure what to do, I felt like it was partially my responsibility to take care of her, she was found in my car. But, the sleeplessness of three days was getting to me, so, we left. I gave them my contact number, in case they needed me for something, for the first few days, I didn’t receive a call. I decided to drop by the hospital after five days, just to check if she was taken care of or not.”

Hoseok twisted on his seat and crossed his arms, Yoongi avoided looking at the way the muscle of his bicep formed. It wasn’t the time for that.

“Turns out she was still at the hospital,” Yoongi continued, “She was sent to an orphanage but her health declined rapidly within few days, she would keep crying, she would vomit everything that she would eat, it was like her body was rejecting everything. For a child that was so small, she suffered a lot. For a child who had no idea what was happening, she suffered. I asked if I can go see her, I had this guilt in me, as if it was all my fault,” Yoongi said and smiled sadly.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Hoseok said in a small voice, even though now Yoongi knew it wasn’t but having someone say it out loud was different.

“When I entered the room, she was with a nurse, she was asleep. I asked if I can stay there for a while and they allowed me. The search for her parents were on but there was nothing, no trace nothing, the fingerprints from the car lead to nowhere, even her DNA was ran into the system and there was still nothing. I looked at her and I she looked like a different kid all together in just few days. She got so skinny that it scared me. Soon she started moving and she woke up. The first thing she did was, cry. I panicked, I have never handled a child, I moved over to her bed so that I can call the nurse and then,” Yoongi paused and a small smile spread to his face.

“She looked at me and she stopped crying, I panicked more than I did before. I thought something was wrong, she stopped immediately and I called the nurse. I couldn’t stop looking at her and she just looked… calm. I was scared for a second and then when the doctors came and they were pretty surprised that she wasn’t crying. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I left. The next the hospital called me, asked me if I can come over as they wanted to have a talk about her. I went and they had this whole team with them, of seven to eight people, they asked me what my thought on being a foster parent was.”

“They wanted you to keep the baby?” Hoseok asked in shook, as if forgetting that the said baby is sleeping in the room to his left.

“They told me that right after I left, she started crying again, that the only two times she was calm was when she was around me. The physiatrist said it’s possible as I was her first human touch, I held her till we reached the hospital. Even though Namjoon was the first one who saw her, I was the one who held her first. I wasn’t sure where they were going with the conversation. I’ve never considered myself as a foster parent, I’ve never had time or interest.”

“So, she’s only here with you for a while?” Hoseok twisted in his seat again, maybe it was just too much to gasp in such a short time.

“Will you let me finish?” Yoongi looked over at him with no malice and Hoseok gave him an apologetic smile.

“I didn’t know shit about foster care at that time, to be honest, I still don’t know a lot about it. I told them I don’t have the time to take care of the child, I’m always on field and I’ve never done this before. They asked me to think about it. I spoke with the rest of the team and Namjoon was very concerned with her health, he was worried that she… she wouldn’t survive for long. We decided to do it, Namjoon, Jeongguk and I started living together. I filed all the paperwork and they had child services sent in every few weeks just to make sure we’re all doing well.”

“Namjoon and Jeongguk live with you?” Hoseok asked in confusion, they were just at Jeongguk’s place a few hours ago and he has never seen Namjoon’s place.

“Hoseok, if you speak again-”

“Will you kiss me to shut me up?” Hoseok smirked and Yoongi blushed. “Now that’s how you make a person stop talking,” Hoseok said and laughed. Yoongi tried to ignore the heat on his face and continued.

“At first it was difficult, one of us had to stay at home to take care of her, she started crawling and all the things kids do. And even though she never caused trouble with Namjoon and Jeongguk, she was the happiest with me. I still don’t get it. Soon she started walking, I never knew a one year old could walk. She was a quiet child, we used to live in a neighborhood surrounded by parents so, it was easy for us to make her mingle with other kids. I never wanted her to isolate herself from the rest of the world.”

Hoseok smiled, Yoongi looked lost in thought and it gave Hoseok a moment to actually look at Yoongi. Hoseok never noticed just how young Yoongi looked despite his age. Yes, Yoongi was shorter in height than him but in a suit, Yoongi has a bigger persona. He looked his age when he is in his professional clothes, but dressed in a pajama and an oversized black hoodie he looked younger; way younger than Hoseok.

“When she turned one, Namjoon joked about how I should adopt her, we were joking around but his words never left me. I started thinking about it. I contacted the hospital and the child services and they gave me the contact info of the agency she was named under. They were very cooperative, helped me tons, saved me so much of time. The only trouble that came was when they realized that Namjoon and Jeongguk have moved out. They wanted to know who’ll take care of her when I won’t be home. I didn’t live with my parents, I moved soon after graduation. I wanted to get out of that town. Big city, big crowd doesn’t make you the center of attention and maybe that was what I was chasing.”

Hoseok gave him a nod, even though their desire to be in the center was different he still understood where Yoongi was coming from.

“Anyway, my brother said he’d move here, in the city with me. I told him he doesn’t have to because she’s my responsibility but it was the time where he was dating. He said he wanna see if he and his girlfriend could handle a child and they were happy to babysit, he started looking for a job and within a few months he got a job here. So, he moved here and now whenever I’m away, he or his girlfriend are taking care of Yeoun. It wasn’t the ideal situation, I wasn’t sure if the authorities will allow it. But you take Yeoun away from me and she wouldn’t do so well. They noticed and understood it.”

“So, they just allowed it?”

“More like, I’m under supervision. They dropped by once every month unannounced, sometimes the child services will have a doctor with them just for a random check up. There have been times when I wasn’t home, but things have been well. She’s doing good and my brother and his girlfriend are amazing with her and luckily she doesn’t cry much whenever they’re around. There have been rare times when I’ll have to drop things and just head home because she just wasn’t… feeling… feeling well?” Yoongi said the last words as a question, it wasn’t like she wasn’t well, it was more like she wouldn’t stop crying. She wouldn’t throw a tantrum but she would refuse to talk to people, she would sit in a corner and cry. Yoongi’s heart aches at that.

Hoseok stayed quiet. Just a simple small nod and his eyes were down.

“Today was one of those days. I got a call right before you guys appeared and I just had to leave the place and then they left and said we should talk but, I’m sorry, I just was in such a rush,” Yoongi said and looked away from Hoseok. He wasn’t guilty for what was done, Yeoun needed him and he would always put everything behind her. But, that doesn’t mean he wasn’t upset over how things were handled.

“I… I came here to apologize for how I talked,” Hoseok said and tried to meet Yoongi’s eyes. To let Yoongi know just how honest he was.

“You don’t have to, it wasn’t like you lied or anything, I just was… I should have handled it better,” Yoongi still wasn’t looking at Hoseok. His eyes were hung low and fixed between his own legs.

Hoseok stayed quiet, he knew that they both would just keep taking the blame on them. Yoongi would always think that if he would have mentioned Yeoun before things would have been different. As true as it was, it wasn’t Hoseok’s place to judge him. Hoseok couldn’t even imagine what it was like having a kid, what through process a parent would have, let alone a single parent.

“Are you happy?” Hoseok asked instead and this time Yoongi met his eyes.

“What?” Yoongi asked in confusion.

“Happy with Yeoun and the situation?”

“Yes,” Yoongi said without hesitation, “Maybe, I would have had a different answer if you would have asked me this a year back but she’s my life now. She… there’s this balance in me because of her. Having a kid really does make you a different person.” Yoongi was smiling and Hoseok smiled as well.

Hoseok smile, lazy and sleepy, he hasn’t been sleeping well lately and sleep has finally caught on to him. He wanted to reach out and take Yoongi’s hand in his own, just to hold and just to touch. But whatever happened just then was too much to process. He needed at least a good night’s sleep and a day to think it over.

“What are you thinking?” Yoongi asked when Hoseok stayed quiet.

“I’m planning on how I can steal Yeoun from you and make her fall in love with me, so you’ll have no other choice but to be with me,” Hoseok said and smiled at the way Yoongi’s gummy smile appeared.

“You’re so annoying,” Yoongi said and rolled his eyes, his smile betrayed him.

Hoseok laughed and his yawn betrayed him. Yoongi looked over at his watch and realized that it was already a little after midnight.

“You can… you can sleep here for tonight,” Yoongi offered shyly. Hoseok smiled.

“So eager to have me in your bed?”

“That’s not… that’s not what-” Yoongi threw a cushion at Hoseok when he caught him laughing.

“I’m joking and no, I can’t sleep here.”

“I mean, you can take my bed, I’ll sleep on the sofa,” Yoongi said.

“I just… I think I need tonight to process, having you near will just mess up with my thoughts,” Hoseok said and winked at Yoongi and Yoongi tried his best to bite back a smile. He failed but hoped it worked.

“I can drive you home,” Yoongi said.

“And what about Yeoun?” Hoseok asked.

“I’ll take her with me. She’s asleep she won’t know,” Yoongi replied and Hoseok smiled at just how much Yoongi was trying.

“I have my car, I’ll get home safe. I’ll even drop you a message when I’ll reach, don’t worry.” With that Hoseok stood up and stretched. Yoongi looked away as Hoseok’s t-shirt rode up with the stretching.

They walked towards the main door silently, not sure what was within the boundaries.

Hoseok opened the door and stepped outside and Yoongi thought that he would leave just like that. Hoseok turned to face Yoongi. A soft smile planted on his lips.

“I mean it, when I said I want it all, with you, I mean it,” Hoseok said in a low voice, his voice almost a whisper. With his words Yoongi’s heart raced.

“You should still think about it, take the night to think,” Yoongi said. He wanted to trust Hoseok but there was a tiny voice in his head that wasn’t too sure of it.

“I don’t need time to think over it, I know what I want, Yoongi. And I’ll try my best to win over Yeoun. You’ve raised her well,” Hoseok smiled and Yoongi swore that if he had the courage, he would have kissed Hoseok then and there.

Yoongi hardly ever received compliments on his parenting, it would always be Namjoon saying sweet stuff but Yoongi always knew he came from a bias point of view. Hoseok saying stuff like that was different. Yoongi looked down and he could hear faint laughter in the background.

“I should get going now,” Hoseok said and Yoongi gave him a nod. They looked at each other for a little while longer. Hoseok stayed right where he was, unable to move even when he has said he would go at least three times already.

“Good night, Yoongi.” Before Yoongi could reply Hoseok leaned down to kiss his cheek. Soft lips connecting with his cheeks make shiver run down Yoongi’s spine. Hoseok moved back, smiled and left. Yoongi stood at his door speechless.

That night when Yoongi went to bed, he was sure that Jung Hoseok would drive him crazy in all the right ways.

 

 

 

Taehyung twisted and turned on the bed. He couldn’t sleep. Jeongguk refused to cuddle with him because he said they need time and space to think about them. Taehyung reached over Jeongguk to get to the side table to check the time, it was only two am.

“What is it?” Jeongguk startled Taehyung and he lost his balance and dropped straight on Jeongguk.

“What the hell?” Jeongguk said in pain as Taehyung’s chest dropped on Jeongguk’s head.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Taehyung yelled. “You scared the living shit out of me.”

“What are you doing on me in the middle on the night?”

“I thought you were asleep.”

“That still doesn’t answer my questions.”

“I was checking the time,” Taehyung said and sat down on the bed. There was no light in the room except for what little light came through the curtains.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Jeongguk asked and turned towards Taehyung. His right cheek dug deep in the pillow.

“I can’t sleep.”

“And why is that?” Jeongguk said in a sleepy voice.

“I don’t know, okay,” Taehyung said in frustration, he couldn’t tell himself why he was being like that.

Jeongguk took a deep breath in and exhaled loudly.

“If I’m an inconvenience to you, I’ll go sleep outside on the couch,” Taehyung said in an annoyed tone and started to get up, Jeongguk help his wrist softly with no power.

Jeongguk them moved around to turn on the night lamp. The dim light illuminated the room.

“What happened?” Jeongguk opened his eyes and blinked at Taehyung softly.

“I don’t know, okay. I just… I don’t know.” Taehyung wasn’t lying. There have had been times in the past as well when everything would be doing great but suddenly his mood would drop and he just couldn’t figure it out.

Jeongguk replied with a hum and help Taehyung’s wrist again, drawing small and slow circles on it.

“What’s ‘V’?” Jeongguk asked softly.

“What?” Taehyung blinked at Jeongguk a few times.

“Your paintings, they’re all signed as ‘V’ and not your name, why?” Jeongguk tried his best to open his eyes and to focus on Taehyung.

“Oh that, I… it’s a stupid story and really boring,” Taehyung said.

“Okay then, good night,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung pouted. “I love boring stories, tell me,” Jeongguk said with a small smile.

“I told my dad that I wanted to sell my painting, I wanted to take it up as a profession. Do commissions once in a while and all that but I never wanted my face or name to be out there. Dad’s company and I owns all the legal rights of it and then we started to come up with names. Dad said that the legal team came up with some pseudonym names like Lex, Six and V. I was asked to pick one. I never wanted a big or long name so I picked ‘V’. It doesn’t have any deep meaning and V stands for Victory and I liked it,” Taehyung answer.

“Victory because you remain winning,” Jeongguk said and smiled. Taehyung laughed.

“The company, they don’t listen to me much. Like, I suggested a few names as well and they rejected all of them. Said, it’ll be too close to my real name and it might end up revealing my identity.”

Jeongguk just kept his eyes on Taehyung. There was always a sadness whenever Taehyung talked of the company or his parents. It wasn’t resentment but… grief. Jeongguk wanted to ask why but he wasn’t sure how to do that.

“V is nice too, you look cute when you pronounce it,” Jeongguk said instead, just to make the boy smile. And he did.

“Now my turn,” Taehyung said and Jeongguk sifted in the bed to look at Taehyung properly.

“How did you get this?” Taehyung asked and traced the scar on Jeongguk’s left cheek with his index finger.

“You can see it now?” Jeongguk let out a laugh.

“The light is doing wonders to your skin,” Taehyung replied.

“It’s a stupid story as well,” Jeongguk replied and help Taehyung’s hand as they kept tracing his scar.

“I love stupid stories,” Taehyung replied and let Jeongguk play with his fingers.

“It was during my childhood; my brother and I were playing a computer game and we got into some argument. Then a fight broke out and the saying ‘boys will be boys’ was invented.”

Jeongguk laughed and it led to Taehyung laughing as well.

“In short, I don’t remember the details. I thought it’d heal but when I saw the scar and it remains… well, my brother apologized a lot, if that’s something.”

“Why have I never seen it?” Taehyung asked. Taehyung was sure that he has examined Jeongguk’s face before. He was sure that a scar so prominent would be hard to miss.

“I use makeup to cover it.”

“Why?”

“People stare and then ask questions. I once met this client who kept on looking at me-”

“You don’t have to talk about me like that,” Taehyung teased and Jeongguk laughed.

“He’d keep looking,” Jeongguk continued. “And once my term with him was over he asked me what happened and how I got the scar, I told him how it happened and he looked really disappointed by my answer. He said he thought it’s a war scar, like, as if I would ever participate in a war,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung hit his shoulder.

“People have different reactions, maybe because of the field I’m in, many of them just assume it’s because I was fighting someone, when no, I just got beaten up by my brother when I was little.”

“You should tell them it’s a ‘war scar’.”

“I once did,” Jeongguk said and Taehyung’s eyes got wider.

“Are you kidding me? What was the person’s reaction?”

“They got scared, I don’t know why, and asked Namjoon if he could replace me with someone else for them. Yoongi hated it, made me swear that I’d never lie.”

“Yoongi took over for you?” Taehyung asked and Jeongguk nod, they laughed like crazy.

“Yoongi was so grumpy from it all, I had a good laugh over it. He hated that man. The amount of time he had called Yoongi into his bedroom because he was suspicious someone was in there, it was crazy. We had fifteen people at his house. Half of our man power was at his house. But he gave heavy money, so, no complaints.”

Taehyung laughed. Jeongguk was still lying on the bed but his view was perfect. From down there, Jeongguk could just appreciate all of Taehyung without thinking he would go dizzy over it.

“Are you enjoying it here? Is Yoongi still grumpy?” Taehyung asked softly.

“Yoongi is a soft ball, he just acts like he’s all rough and tough. You should see him around Hoseok.”

“You’ve noticed it too, right? Hoseok just has been in such a bad mood lately and it scares me. Like, he would still smile and laugh but his smile wouldn’t reach his eyes and he would zone out of the conversation every now and then,” Taehyung mentioned. Whatever it was that was happening between Hoseok and Yoongi, he hoped they resolve it.

“Yoongi… it’s hard. It’s not my place to say but Yoongi have priorities, responsibilities none of us have. It’s a little different for Yoongi.” Jeongguk stopped there. As much as he would want to tell Taehyung everything, some things just weren’t his to tell.

Taehyung just gave a soft nod. He understood.

“We have an early day tomorrow, we’re moving back to your house, you should get some sleep.”

“I like it here,” Taehyung said.

Jeongguk smiled, wasn’t sure how to answer that.

“The boys miss you, the number of messages I receive from Jimin is crazy,” Jeongguk said.

“And I can’t believe you guys were suspicious of him.”

Jeongguk wasn’t going to mention that Jimin was still on Yoongi’s suspect list. There were still some questions that remained unanswered. He just smiled instead, hoped for Taehyung to just get the hint.

Taehyung laid down and Jeongguk turned the light off.

“No cuddles?” Taehyung asked one last time.

“Taehyung, you have to talk to your… friend before...” Jeongguk said hesitantly. Jeongguk was consciously aware that him and Taehyung hadn’t done anything wrong. That Taehyung and ‘that guy’ weren’t in a real relationship, that it was all a show and they both were open to having other people in their lives. Yet, deep down, it felt wrong to Jeongguk. As if he was involved in some drama he never signed up for. He knew it wasn’t morally wrong for him to be with Taehyung, for him to touch or kiss or hold Taehyung but he wanted to do all of that with a clear conscious. Otherwise, what was the difference between Taehyung and ‘that guy’.

“Watch me do that first thing in the morning,” Taehyung said Jeongguk smiled. They drifted to sleep soon after.

Little did Taehyung knew that Jeongguk’s distraction worked on him, that his chest wasn’t as heavy as before and that he allowed himself to sleep soundlessly.

 

 

Jimin was sleeping next to Seokjin, they both were exhausted from the day and Jimin crashed as soon as they entered the house. It was four am and Seokjin couldn’t sleep anymore. His mind drifted to Namjoon.

Him and Namjoon were okay, he would like to believe that. He would want things to be okay, of course. But since Namjoon has kissed his cheeks, he hadn’t been able to meet the younger one’s eyes.

It had less to do with the fact that it was a kiss on the cheeks and more with the fact that it was from Namjoon. Seokjin wasn’t shy, he was bold, he was confident but lately, he had been nervous. Whenever Namjoon was around, Seokjin would calculate his steps, overthink his actions.

They have been flirting shamelessly, or at least Seokjin has, but skin on skin, bare skin on bare skin, was another territory. Not that Seokjin would mind, but it made him nervous. It scared him a little.

Seokjin’s phone buzzed and he looked at the text: _are you awake?_ Was a message from Namjoon.

Seokjin debated, it wasn’t like he was asleep or was going to sleep anytime soon, he had his share of sleep.

 _Why aren’t you sleeping?_ Seokjin replied.

 _Can you meet me? If it’s not too much?_ Namjoon messaged and Seokjin sat up. He looked over at Jimin, he was still asleep. Jimin wouldn’t be up before the sun was out completely.

 _Now? I can’t leave Jimin alone._ Seokjin hit sent.

 _I’m outside._ Namjoon replied and Seokjin looked at his phone for way too long. Namjoon was here? Seokjin wasn’t sure what to think. Seokjin stood up and rushed outside. He was very well aware that it was little after four am and that the sky was still dark. There was no sunlight just the light from the moon. And that it was January and it was freezing outside. His brain knew it but his body rushed outside. Closing the door behind him silently so to not wake Jimin up. Seokjin ignored all the five messages that came on, probably from Namjoon.

He opened the door to a panicked Namjoon on his phone.

“What are you doing here?” Seokjin asked as soon as he closed the door behind him.

“H-hi,” Namjoon replied in a shaky voice.

“Hi? Namjoon, it’s four in the morning.” Seokjin’s body then realized just how cold it was. He wrapped his hands around himself and rubbed his arms.

No words came out of Namjoon’s mouth. He removed the coat he was wearing and wrapped it around Seokjin, very very carefully. Made sure not to touch him in the process.

“You’ll catch a cold,” Seokjin said as Namjoon gave him his coat. It still wasn’t enough and on top of that the coat smelled like Namjoon. Seokjin wanted to run.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Namjoon said and stopped. Seokjin waited for him to add something but Namjoon stayed quiet.

“So, you decided to drop by?” Seokjin was getting impatient.

Namjoon opened his mouth and closed again, opened and closed again, he repeated this a few more times and Seokjin got frustrated, maybe the cold was getting to him.

“Come inside, it’s so cold, we’ll freeze before you even utter a word,” Seokjin said and grabbed Namjoon’s sleeves and dragged him inside. Seokjin looked around, knew Taehyung’s room was too close to his and so was the living room. He dragged Namjoon into Yoongi and Jeongguk’s room.

They didn’t turn the lights on, but Seokjin had a light in the living room on which gave the room enough light for them to see each other. Seokjin was scared that Jimin might wake up.

“Namjoon, what are you doing here?” Seokjin asked again but this time, softly.

“Did I do something wrong?” Namjoon asked and looked down. Namjoon was a confident man but in front of the older, he has never been so confident.

“What?”

“You wouldn’t look at me, you wouldn’t talk to me. Did I cross a line?”

Seokjin understood was Namjoon was talking about and his chest went heavy, his stomach dropped. He never realized how Namjoon must have felt in all of it.

“What? No, no no, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Seokjin was talking in whispers, too afraid to speak normally. Too afraid to wake Jimin up.

Namjoon stayed quiet, eyes still down on his hands. “I… you wouldn’t look at me,” Namjoon repeated and Seokjin stepped closer. The silence was so tense that Seokjin was sure Namjoon would be able to heart his rapid heartbeat if he tried.

“I got nervous, it was, I was, it… it was you,” Seokjin said softly.

Namjoon looked up, his eyes on Seokjin and Seokjin wasn’t sure how his heart was beating faster than before.

“Me?”

“I wasn’t expecting it, when you… you know…”

“When I kissed your cheek?” Namjoon finished for Seokjin and Seokjin gave him a shy smile.

“You think I’m always expecting the forehead kisses you give me?” Namjoon asked in his defense and Seokjin looked down. A shy smile spread on his lips.

“I’m… I… I am not… It’s not-”

“I can stop if you want me to,” Namjoon said slowly.

“No,” Seokjin said in a heartbeat. He would never want Namjoon to stop. Namjoon smiled with how fast Seokjin replied.

“I mean… I guess…” Seokjin was stuttering, he was painfully aware of that.

“Did I just make The Kim Seokjin shy?” Namjoon said teasingly.

“Stop before I throw you out of my house,” Seokjin threatened but the blush on his face betrayed him. Namjoon laughed softly without a noise.

“I thought you would be okay with, seeing how things were, I’m just… I’m sorry if it was uncalled for,” Namjoon said and Seokjin wanted to explain how Namjoon was taking all of it the wrong way.

“I’m just not used to it,” Seokjin said in almost a whisper.

“Maybe… maybe… we,” Namjoon tried but he couldn’t complete the sentence. His face too hot just thinking about what he was about to say.

“We what?” Seokjin said instead.

Namjoon knew it was now or never for him, “Maybe we can do more of it, so you get used to it.”

This left Seokjin speechless, his mouth hung open just slightly before his lips spread in a shy smile.

“You’re… wow… look at you, so brave and all,” Seokjin said and Namjoon smiled. Namjoon stepped forward and they were so close that it pained Seokjin how they just weren’t touching.

“I’m learning from the best,” Namjoon said.

Seokjin wasn’t sure what to do or say next. He just kept his eyes on Namjoon. Seokjin’s whole body was on fire. Heat spreading all over his body within a few seconds. And all of it happened just because Namjoon brushed his finger over Seokjin’s hand.

“Maybe we should,” Seokjin said shyly, he hated how small his voice sounded. Namjoon was doing things to his voice now.

Namjoon stayed still, he knew he got the message from Seokjin, but he still couldn’t move. It was all too much all of a sudden. Namjoon pressed his lips in a thin line and Seokjin pouted. He then leaned forward and in a flash of a second planted the softest kiss on Seokjin’s cheek. Seokjin was sure if he had his eyes closed, he would have missed the connection, that was how light the kiss was.

Seokjin giggled and Namjoon laughed, Seokjin pushed his shoulder and laughed with him.

“This is so stupid, we’re acting like kids who’re seeing each other behind their parent’s back. My parent is sleeping in my room and I’m letting you inside my house. This is such a teen cliche,” Seokjin said and laughed again, covered his mouth so noise escaped.

Namjoon was too happy to say a word. He just kept his eyes on Seokjin and watched him laugh.

“Stop looking at me like that,” Seokjin said and pushed his shoulder again.

“Jin,” a very sleepy Jimin’s voice echoed in the house and Seokjin panicked.

“Jimin?” Seokjin said from inside Jeongguk and Yoongi’s room. The doors were open and Seokjin was sure that if Jimin looked closely he would see Namjoon there.

Namjoon used his mind and stepped deeper inside the room, into the dark.

“Where are you?” Jimin was rubbing at his eyes and Seokjin walked out the room in silence, turned towards Namjoon and asked him not to make a noise.

“I just needed something from the other room, I woke up to get water and thought I’d just grab it as well,” Seokjin spoke way too fast but a sleepy Jimin found it normal.

“Water,” Jimin said.

“What?”

“Need. Water.”

Seokjin rushed into the kitchen and filled a glass of water for Jimin. “You should get some rest now, we have a long day tomorrow,” Seokjin said and started pushing Jimin to his room.

“Sleep with me, I get cold,” Jimin said and took a sip of water.

“I’m just coming, let me turn all the lights off,” Seokjin said and Jimin turned towards Seokjin before he entered the room,

“Why are you wearing a coat?” Jimin asked and Seokjin looked down, he was wearing Namjoon’s coat. Stupid Namjoon. Stupid-cute Namjoon.

“I was getting cold, thought it might warm me up,” Seokjin said and it wasn’t all a lie.

“Yes, it’s cold, come soon,” Jimin said and walked inside. Seokjin made sure Jimin was in the bed when he closed the door silently. He took a deep breathe, stabled himself and rushed towards the room.

Seokjin grabbed Namjoon’s hand and dragged him towards the front door.

“You have to leave now,” Seokjin whispered and it truly made him feel like a kid.

“I’ll go, call or message me, whenever you want or whenever you can or something,” Namjoon said and tried to play it cool. He still wasn’t sure what the boundaries were.

“Okay okay okay, just go now,” Seokjin said and started pushing him out the door. He would keep looking back just to make sure Jimin wasn’t out.

Namjoon stepped out, a smile on his face and he opened to say something but Seokjin just grabbed Namjoon’s face, cheeks flushed on his hands and kissed Namjoon’s right cheek and then went in to plant a long and loud kiss on Namjoon’s forehead.

The words died in Namjoon’s tongue.

“Message me when you reach home, and never ever walk out of the house when it’s this dark and early,” Seokjin said in a rush just to stop the blush on his face. He could feel his ears turning red, body going warm.

Namjoon just gave him a nod, all of it was not just new but also very unexpected. Namjoon wasn’t sure if this was how ordinary people do things but then again, Seokjin wasn’t just some ordinary man.

Seokjin closed the door and rushed towards his room, when he started getting in the bed, he realized he still had the coat on. He felt bad for making Namjoon walk out just like that without a coat, even though Namjoon came in a car. He took out the coat and hung it in his closet.

Stupid Namjoon, Seokjin thought and tried getting a few more hours of sleep.

 

“Taehyung, you can’t wear this,” Jeongguk said when Taehyung got all ready to leave. They were finally going back to the house. The window in Taehyung’s room was fixed.

“Why? I look good,” Taehyung said and ran his hands on his clothes.

“Because that’s my shirt,” Jeongguk replied.

“No one knows that.”

“I know that,” Jeongguk said and rubbed his face.

“I have a coat on over it, you can’t even see it,” Taehyung said and tried to button up his coat.

“Just take it off, Jimin got bunch of your clothes, wear something of yours,” Jeongguk said and pointed towards the bag of clothes that laid in front of them.

“You take it off of me then,” Taehyung said and spread his arms. Jeongguk blushed and said something under his breath.

“What?” Taehyung asked as he couldn’t hear, a mischievous smile set on his lips.

“You’re impossible.”

“Shall we go then? I don’t wanna keep them waiting,” Taehyung said and walked outside of the house.

The house wasn’t that far away, hardly an hour with traffic.

“I talked with Hyu,” Taehyung said once they were in the car and on the road.

“And?”

“He acted like he cares about me,” Taehyung said and fake laughed.

“Why do you think he’s acting?”

“I just have a feeling; otherwise why would he be going around having sex with other people?”

“Would it have made a difference?”

“What?” Taehyung asked, unsure of what the question was. Jeongguk’s eyes were fixed on the road.

“I mean, if he was genuinely interested and he wasn’t sleeping with others, would you have had a different response for him?”

Taehyung gulped and thought for a second, “No, I still don’t want him like that.”

“Like what?” Jeongguk knew he was pushing but he still wanted Taehyung to say it.

“You want me to say it?” Taehyung asked.

“Do you want to?”

Taehyung looked around and noticed that they would be at their house in less than ten minutes and the traffic from here to his house was non-existent.

“I don’t want him like I want you,” Taehyung said softly. He noticed as Jeongguk swallowed at his words. Watched as Jeongguk’s adam apple moved up and down.

“I don’t want him to touch me like I want you to touch me, I don’t want him to kiss me, I don’t want his hands on me, I don’t want his lips on my neck.” Taehyung stopped and watched as the colour rose to Jeongguk’s cheeks. His mouth slightly opened but his eyes still fixed on the road.

“Jeongguk?” Taehyung said softly.

“Hmm,” Jeongguk was sure he wouldn’t be able to make out words from his mouth.

“We were supposed to take a left, you missed the turn,” Taehyung said and pressed his lips to suppress a laugh.

Jeongguk shut his eyes tight for only a fraction of a second before he took the U-turn and took the turn that was needed.

They both stayed quiet. Soon they were outside the house, Jeongguk parked the car and they both still remained seated. Jeongguk took off his seatbelt and Taehyung mirrored his action.

Taehyung kept his eyes on Jeongguk and Jeongguk was still looking straight outside.

“You said you wanted to know,” Taehyung pouted and said in his defense. He wasn’t sure if Jeongguk was upset or what.

Jeongguk turned to Taehyung and Taehyung held his breath. Jeongguk looked intense, his pupil slightly wider and his gaze looked hazy. His mouth a little open. Taehyung runs his tongue in between of his lips and noticed as Jeongguk’s eyes dropped on his lips.

Taehyung counted till three and when Jeongguk didn’t make a move, he closed the distance between their lips. This kiss was unlike how they first kissed. This was passion and this was fast. The angle was awkward for Taehyung, so he lifted his body up, Jeongguk placed his hand underneath Taehyung’s thigh and pulled. Taehyung moved his legs so he was sitting on top of Jeongguk. His legs on the both sides, Jeongguk’s hands underneath Taehyung’s thighs.

Taehyung locked his hands behind Jeongguk’s neck and pulled him closer to deepen the kiss. Jeongguk let out a slow moan in Taehyung’s mouth and Taehyung smiled. Taehyung pressed his whole body on Jeongguk’s and maybe it became a little too much for Jeongguk and he pulled back.

Their breathes fast and heavy. Jeongguk closed his eyes and dropped his head back. Taehyung smiled at a wrecked Jeongguk. All they have done is kiss each other and Taehyung liked how undone Jeongguk looked just then.

“We should get inside before someone catches us,” Taehyung said and Jeongguk opened his eyes.

“You’re gonna get me in trouble one day,” Jeongguk said nervously and rubbed his face. They laughed lightly. Smiles on both of their faces.

“It’s not my fault you get turned on by seeing me in your clothes,” Taehyung teased as he got back to the passenger’s seat.

Jeongguk wanted to say a lot of things, how it wasn’t just his clothes and how they were just a bonus. But he stayed quiet. Stayed silent otherwise Taehyung would be too fast to use them against him.

They walked out of the car and walked inside the house. Jimin, Hoseok and Seokjin were already there.

“Where’s Namjoon and Yoongi?” Jimin asked and moved over to hug Taehyung.

“They would be here by the evening, had some work at the office,” Jeongguk replied and walked over to the kitchen to get some water. His throat was getting dry.

“What’s the plan for today?” Taehyung said and sat down next to Seokjin, he has missed him.

“Nothing, I’ve already cooked lunch and I’ve made enough to go for the second round, so everyone’s having dinner and lunch here.”

“I got us all some alcohol,” Hoseok said and pointed towards the refrigerator.

“I really needed that,” Jimin said and laid down with his head on Taehyung’s lap. Taehyung started playing with Jimin’s hair.

 

When Namjoon and Yoongi arrived, it was already nine at night. “What took you you so long? I’m starving,” Taehyung said and moved towards the kitchen to get dinner, everyone followed him.

“Sorry, we had some things to run at the office,” Namjoon said, tried his best not to look at Seokjin. Things weren’t complicated but he was sure if he looked at him, Namjoon would smile and that would give away way too much information then he would want.

They all ate their lunch with small talks, about the case, about how Taehyung had been and how life without Taehyung had been for Seokjin.

Yoongi briefed them about the case, mentioned how they’re looking at everyone who was present at the party and left out how Jimin is one of the suspects.

Taehyung briefed them of his stay at Jeongguks, mentioned how rude Jeongguk was and how even when Taehyung had no clothes of his own Jeongguk asked him not to wear his clothes. He left out the kissing and confessions.

Seokjin briefed them how loudly Jimin slept last night and how Jimin needs food every few hours. He left out where he sneaked Namjoon in the house and soft kisses were exchanged.

“I’m just gonna go start with the drinks, I don’t know what everyone’s plan is,” Jimin said and went to get the drinks from the refrigerator.

“Get me one,” Taehyung said, followed by Jeongguk, Seokjin and Namjoon. Hoseok looked over at Yoongi and asked, “Aren’t you gonna have one?”

Yoongi shook his head, he had limited his alcohol intake since Yeoun, which not only had been good for his health but also for his head. Yoongi’s hangovers were bad. In the past as well he has tried to limit his intake but like people say, a kid truly changes you.

“Hoseok? Yoongi?” Jimin said from the refrigerator.

“I’m good, just get me sprite or something,” Hoseok said and Jimin got him Coke instead. Hoseok was too good in a mood to complain.

They all drank with laughter, as their body started going light. Laughing while drinking is contagious and that’s only a fact. Soon it became a laughing competition of who can laugh the loudest. Yoongi just rolled his eyes and Hoseok laughed at them.

Hoseok saw the drunk situation as an opportunity to go sit next to Yoongi, they had been sitting parallel to each other throughout the night, which just made the conversations difficult. Hoseok stood up to get a glass of water and instead or going to sit next to Jeongguk, where he originally was, he sat next to Yoongi and Yoongi’s body stiffened.

“They won’t notice.” Hoseok whispered and leaned a little closer to Yoongi. Yoongi concentrated on his breathing instead of how Hoseok’s arm was touching his own.

Yoongi wasn’t a man of many words but he wanted to talk to Hoseok.

“Your brother is with her?” Hoseok asked instead, a little scared to actually say the name out loud.

“Yeah,” Yoongi replied with a smile and added, “She was asking for you in the morning.”

“She was?” Hoseok’s face lit up.

“She literally asked me where ‘Hobi’ is?” Hoseok smiles brighter hearing this from Yoongi.

“You better not steal her away from me,” Yoongi said lightly and Hoseok looked at him with a soft smile.

“Wow, who would have known that the whole Min family is whipped for me,” Hoseok joked and Yoongi rolled his eyes with a smile on his face.

“So, how are we gonna do this?” Hoseok asked next.

“What do you mean?”

“Are we not gonna do it again till she gives us her blessings?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi looked at him in confusion.

“Are we gonna kiss or not?” Hoseok leaned over and asked and it gave Yoongi goosebumps.

“You wanna kiss me?” Yoongi was stupid to ask.

“I thought I made my intentions clear.”

“I… I don’t want things to move too fast, I wanna take it on a slow pace for her sake,” Yoongi added. He has thought a lot about Hoseok, especially last night. He had thought of how he would want to kiss the boy next to him senselessly.

“I have a deal... or more like a plan,” Hoseok said and Yoongi gave him a nod to go on.

“How about we just kiss once a day,” Hoseok said and Yoongi frowned with confusion.

“You mean like, one kiss every twenty-four hours?” Yoongi asked.

“No, I mean more like we kiss once every day, one kiss on Monday, another on Tuesday, so we don’t have to keep up with the time and believe me, it’s extremely slow,” Hoseok said and there was a request in his voice.

“I don’t think it’ll harm anyone,” Yoongi said shyly with a brave face.

“I wanna kiss you now, Min Yoongi,” Hoseok leaned and whispered his Yoongi’s ear.

Yoongi swallowed visibly, no one was looking at them, they were all so wasted that they were busy with themselves.

“Here?” Yoongi asked but he wouldn’t look at Hoseok, he was sure their faces would be too close.

“In your room?” Hoseok eyed the vacant room and Yoongi gave a small hesitant nod. He was nervous.

Hoseok stood up and walked towards the room without hesitation, no one noticed. Yoongi stayed still for a while, had a sip of water that Hoseok got and then he stood up.

“I’ll go check on a file in my room,” Yoongi said to the crowd who was busy among themselves. No one paid attention.

Yoongi walked inside the room and closed the door. Hoseok smiled at him and Yoongi smiled nervously in return.

“If you don’t wanna do it, we don’t have to do it,” Hoseok said to comfort Yoongi.

“I’m just nervous,” Yoongi said and ran his hands through his hair, there was no point in lying. “I wanna do it,” he added.

“Good, because I’ve been dying to kiss you,” Hoseok and closed the gap between them. His right hand on Yoongi’s neck and his left hand moved in Yoongi’s hair. Yoongi caught Hoseok’s arm for support. Leaned up as Hoseok leaned down to run his tongue on Yoongi’s bottom lips.

Yoongi’s heat was going wild and his cheeks were flushed. Yoongi slid his hands down and placed them on Hoseok’s waist and pulled him closer. With that move, Hoseok smiled in the kiss which just made Yoongi smile. Hoseok pulled back to look at Yoongi and smiled at Yoongi’s red plump lips.

 “You’re beautiful,” Hoseok said softly to Yoongi and Yoongi looked down. Shy enough to not look at him.

“Shut up,” Yoongi said in response, his voice a little shaky.

Hoseok laughed and added, “You’re cute.”

“I should be saying that,” Yoongi said softly.

“Then say it,” Hoseok said in almost a whisper and Yoongi bit his lips. He looked at Hoseok and as soon as he was about to say something, the door opened.

They both jumped and stood far away from each other.

“There you are,” Jeongguk said as his eyes landed on Yoongi. “We’re out of alcohol,” he said and pouted.

“You’re hammered, we don’t need more,” Yoongi said and walked over to him to push him out. Jeongguk leaned on Yoongi and lead him out of the room. Hoseok followed.

“We all should get some sleep, it’s already too late and we’re out of drinks,” Hoseok said and when Yoongi looked at his hair he hoped and prayed no one would remember. He mouthed at Hoseok to fix his hair when no one was watching.

“Where are we gonna sleep? I can’t drive back?” Namjoon asked.

“Hoseok and I will take my room, Jimin and Seokjin can share a room like they did before and as Taehyung has the biggest bed, you, him and Jeongguk would fit on it,” Yoongi said and hoped no one noticed how he made the plan.

“I wanna sleep with Tae, I have missed him,” Jimin said and hugged Taehyung.

“Well, then Jeongguk can sleep in Seokjin’s room and Jimin can be in Taehyung’s.” Yoongi wanted either Seokjin or Namjoon to object to that. He had noticed how they have stolen glances at each other and he just wanted to see who would snap.

“I think I should be in Taehyung,” a very drunk and a very whipped Jeongguk said.

“In my ‘room’,” Taehyung corrected and smiled. “Not in me.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” Jeongguk said, very drunk and unembarrassed.

“Disgusting, keep it in your pants for one night,” Seokjin said and took Namjoon’s hand and lead him to his room.

Hoseok and Yoongi walked towards Yoongi’s room and Jimin walked towards Taehyung’s room.

“I’ll get the lights,” Jeongguk said and turned off all the lights, went to check the main door to check if it’s locked or not and then walked over to Taehyung.

“I like you in my clothes,” Jeongguk said as he stood face to face with Taehyung and tugged at the shirt.

“We’ve already made that discovery,” Taehyung chuckled and playfully rolled his eyes.

“I think you’re the most breathtaking man in this world,” Jeongguk said and wrapped his arms around Taehyung’s waist and Taehyung giggled.

“You’re just saying that to get in my pants,” Taehyung joked and Jeongguk laughed. Jeongguk’s laugh was beautiful, beautiful in the way it made Taehyung’s heart warm, it made Taehyung happy and Taehyung liked being happy.

“Is it working?” Jeongguk asked playfully.

“If you weren’t this drunk and there wasn’t a drunk Jimin in my room, maybe it would have worked.” Taehyung kissed Jeongguk’s nose.

“You’re gonna spoil me,” Jeongguk said and blinked softly at Taehyung. Taehyung wanted to believe that Jeongguk was happy as well.

“Let’s go, we have to sleep, maybe tonight you’ll cuddle me.” Taehyung held Jeongguk’s hand and lead him to his room where they found Park Jimin laid down in between of the bed.

“Or maybe I’ll be the one cuddling a sleepy Jimin,” Taehyung added and closed the door behind them.

Seokjin and Namjoon on the other hand just sat on the opposite edges of the bed.

“What?” Seokjin said when Namjoon wouldn’t stop looking at him.

“What what?” Namjoon asked.

“You’re being weird, just sleep, okay?” Seokjin said and stood up from the bed but Namjoon held his wrist, he pulled him down so they were sitting side by side. Namjoon turned to look at Seokjin.

“Can you stop looking at me like that?” Seokjin said and moved Namjoon’s face, Namjoon looked back again.

“What? Why?”

“You’re making me nervous,” Seokjin said with a laugh.

“Seokjin,” Namjoon said softly and it warmed Seokjin’s heart.

“Namjoon,” Seokjin said in the same tone.

“Jinnie,” Namjoon said and Seokjin laughed.

“Joonie,” Seokjin said and Namjoon laughed.

“I like it when you call me Joonie,” Namjoon confessed.

Seokjin’s heart raced. Namjoon kept his eyes fixed on Seokjin and then he leaned into Seokjin but before their lips could meet, Seokjin pulled back and pressed his lips.

“Oh, I’m… I’m sorry-”

“No no no, Namjoon, no,” Seokjin said before Namjoon could feel guilty or embarrassed.

“I just thought.”

“I wanna kiss you too, Joonie.”

“Then why?” Namjoon looked at him in confusion.

“You’re drunk, you’re highly intoxicated and I don’t want our first kiss to be under the influence,” Seokjin said honestly.

“I’m not that drunk,” Namjoon murmured. Seokjin bit his lips so not to say how every drunk person has said that.

“We should get some rest for now,” Seokjin said and stood up.

“I don’t think I’ll have the courage to kiss you when I’m sober,” Namjoon said in all honesty.

“Well, all you have to do is give me a hint and I’ll take the lead,” Seokjin replied with all honesty.

“I… I li… You’re nice, Seokjin. You’re good.” Namjoon rubbed his neck. Seokjin smiled.

“Let’s get some sleep, okay?”

“I think I should sleep in Yoongi’s room instead.”

“Why?”

“I’m drunk,” Namjoon admitted, “and I don’t wanna do or say anything which I’ll forget when I’m sober,” and added.

Seokjin lead Namjoon to Yoongi’s room.

Right before Namjoon and Seokjin entered, Yoongi and Hoseok had been discussing Hoseok’s plan. Now that they have already kissed and it was two am, that meant that according to the rule, they could only kiss after the next midnight.

“No,” Hoseok said firmly. “Today was a just an example of how and what we have to do, this doesn’t count.”

Yoongi smiled, “So eager to kiss me again?”

“If I say yes will you not count today’s?”

“If you say yes, I’ll be down on my knees,” Yoongi said and pressed his lips to suppress a laugh. Hoseok’s mouth hung open, he grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it as hard as he could at Yoongi.

“You can’t say such things,” Hoseok yelled in the quiet room and Yoongi laughed.

“How are you gonna stop me? You can’t even kiss me,” Yoongi said and rolled his eyes.

“I never knew you were such a tease, I’m reconsidering all of it,” Hoseok joked.

“How are we gonna sleep? Which side do you prefer?”

“Is this you trying to get to know me better?”

“This is me trying to see where I should sleep,” Yoongi replied and Hoseok gave him a pout.

“Yeoun sleeps well without you?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi moved over to sit on the bed.

“Most of the times, yeah. Like, she’s good with my brother and his girlfriend, she’s also okay with Namjoon and Jeongguk. So, whenever it’s any of those four there, she’s okay. She would make them call me before she would go to bed.”

“Did she call today?” Hoseok asked.

“I put her to bed tonight, that’s why we got here so late,” Yoongi answered.

“I hope she’ll get comfortable with me as well,” Hoseok said shyly. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to show Yoongi just how badly he wanted Yeoun’s approval.

“I wish I had an answer for that.”

“What if… what if she doesn’t like me?” Hoseok asked and before Yoongi could reply the door opened and Namjoon and Seokjin appeared.

“He’s too drunk to be sleeping with me, otherwise, he’ll actually sleep with me,” Seokjin said as soon as he entered.

“I’ll come with you, it’s okay,” Hoseok stood up from his spot and walked over to Seokjin.

“Goodnight, Yoongi,” he said softly and Yoongi murmured the same words back.

Hoseok turned and left. Namjoon went to straight to the bed.

“Well, I’ll be in my room, goodnight, Yoongi,” Seokjin said.

“Seokjin,” Yoongi said hesitantly.

“Hmm, yeah,” Seokjin turned.

“Thanks.”

“What? Why?” Seokjin asked in confusion.

“You’re good for him,” Yoongi said and pointed towards a passed out Namjoon on the bed. Yoongi had been friends with Namjoon the longest, they’ve been best friends for so long that the sudden positive change in Namjoon hadn’t gone unnoticed by Yoongi.

“Oh, I… He’s a nice guy,” Seokjin said shyly.

“He’s stupid but he’s very smart,” Yoongi said and hoped Seokjin understood. Seokjin gave him a nod and with a small bow of his head, he was out the room.

Yoongi went to bed but he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t stop thinking about his kiss with Hoseok. Couldn’t stop thinking about Hoseok.

His train of thoughts got broken when his phone buzzed. Park Jimin, written as the caller’s name.

“Hello?” Yoongi answered.

The line was silent, Yoongi wondered if Jimin drunk dialed him or just dialed him by accident.

“Hello?” Yoongi said again.

“Hello, Yoongi,” Jimin said and Yoongi’s stomach dropped.

“Why are you calling? You’re literally a room away,” Yoongi said. He was sure Namjoon was fast asleep, he wouldn’t hear.

“I don’t wanna wake Tae up,” Jimin replied. Yoongi tried to understand if Jimin was drunk or not but he just couldn’t pinpoint it.

“What do you want Mr. Park, it’s really late,” Yoongi used his professional tone, tried to intimidate the other man but Jimin laughed.

“Oh, is this how we’re doing it?” Jimin laughed again and added, “Go out on a cup of coffee with me, Mr. Min.”

“Why?” Yoongi asked, it seemed so unlike Jimin but then again, he hardly knew Jimin.

“Why not?”

“I’m busy.”

“I’m sure you can make some time for me,” Jimin said and Yoongi paused.

“Where?” Yoongi asked.

“Now, that’s the answer I was looking for, how about that new coffee place that opened right by Hoseok’s place,” Jimin said and something in Yoongi unsettled as he spoke Hoseok’s name.

“Why there?”

“Hoseok said they have the best muffins and I wanna try one,” Jimin replied.

“What time?”

“How about five?” Jimin asked and Yoongi thought of Yeoun, he would have to ask his brother to take care of her again.

“Okay.”

“It’s settled then, it’s a date. Oh, and don’t bring Jeongguk and Namjoon. I just wanna see you,” Jimin hung up before Yoongi could deny it.

The whole night Yoongi couldn’t sleep. His thoughts split between Jimin and Hoseok. He wasn’t sure if he should mention it to Namjoon or Jeongguk and he wasn’t sure how Hoseok would see it. Jimin was their friend now, all of theirs friend.

Jimin wanted to see him. Yoongi kept repeating the conversation in his head to make sense of it. Jimin has noticed Hoseok and Yoongi together. Yoongi was sure Jimin, as he was close to Hoseok, knew of Hoseok’s feelings towards Yoongi. Or, were those things never discussed with them?

Should Yoongi inform Hoseok of the said ‘date’ or just see what Jimin wants? Yoongi couldn’t sleep that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to **[Dee](http://twitter.com/88joongs)** , I was supposed to post this on her birthday but she asked me to post early as she couldn't wait, lmao.
> 
> But I hope you enjoyed this. I had so much fun writing this. And i'm so sorry for such less Taekook. but there's so much that needs to happen that i just had to focus on namjin and yoonseok.
> 
> PROTECT JIMIN AT ALL COSTS.
> 
> tell me how you feel?! what do you think of the chapter. tell me everything, uwu.


	8. Chapter 8

“Where’s Jimin?” someone said.

“I asked, where’s Jimin?” That someone sounded a lot like Yoongi but Taehyung was too deep in his sleep to check.

“Here,” Taehyung mumured.

“Where, Taehyung?” Yoongi’s raise his voice to get his attention. Taehyung opened his eyes and blinked a few times to focus. He looked around and there was no one on the bed, just him.

“He was here, with me and Jeongguk,” Taehyung said in confusion.

“Did he not tell you before he left?” Yoongi asked and Taehyung sat up. He shook his head and Yoongi left. Taehyung was sure they all went to bed soon after the drinks. He checked his phone and it was almost nine in the morning. He wanted to sleep, get more rest. He forced himself up and went to the washroom. He cleaned himself up, brushed his teeth and went to the kitchen for breakfast, he was hungry.

He noticed Seokjin’s bedroom’s door was open and he went to sneak in.

“No one’s home,” came a voice and it startled Taehyung.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Taehyung yelled and grabbed his chest.

“You are the one sneaking around in other people’s bedroom.”

“He’s my brother.”

“And he deserves his own privacy.”

“Jeongguk, what the hell, I have a fragile heart!” Taehyung said instead and walked over to Jeongguk who was on the couch, he had the newspaper laid down next to him, must have put it there when he noticed Taehyung.

“And why are you up so early?” Jeongguk asked, he sat up straight to look up at Taehyung and Taehyung ran a lazy hand through Jeongguk’s hair.

“Yoongi woke me up, was asking about Jimin. Where is everyone?” Taehyung then lowered his hand and ran his thumb lightly over Jeongguk’s scar on his cheeks.

“Jimin and Hoseok left early for work and classes, Namjoon and Seokjin, I don’t really know where they are, I just saw them leave together so I assumed they have work? And then Yoongi left just now.”

“So, it’s just you and me?”

Jeongguk smirked and then smiled, “It’s just us.”

Taehyung straddled Jeongguk and held him by his neck. Taehyung shifted a few times before he found a comfortable position.

“Taehyung,” Jeongguk said breathily.

“Jeongguk,” Taehyung said and looked him straight in the eyes. Taehyung has always noticed how older Jeongguk looks when he was out and about, when he was doing his job. But with him, alone, he always looked younger. He looked his age, he looked like a man who wanted to be worshiped and Taehyung wants to worship him.

Before Jeongguk could open his mouth to say a word, Taehyung leaned in and pressed their lips together. They always kissed like they were chasing a deadline. They always kissed like the world was about to end. They always kissed like they were running out of time.

Taehyung deepened the kiss and grabbed at Jeongguk’s hair and Jeongguk pulled back.

“What? Why? You don’t like it?” Taehyung whined and pouted.

“We can’t do this, not here, it’s your house,” Jeongguk threw his head back with a sigh and Taehyung took it as an invitation to kiss down Jeongguk’s neck. Jeongguk let him for just a few seconds before he asked him to stop and Taehyung sat on the side.

“It’s my house and I want this, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”

“No, it’s… it’s your house and it’s my workplace,” Jeongguk said and looked down at his hands.

“Does that bother you?” Taehyung asked softly, he wasn’t judging but if it was something that concerned Jeongguk then he wanted to know.

“Kinda, it just… it feels wrong.”

“Sure, didn’t feel wrong when you just grabbed my ass,” Taehyung said sarcastically. “Okay, so no touching at my house, I get it,” Taehyung said and held up his hands in surrender.

“Have you had breakfast yet?” Taehyung asked to change the subject.

“I was waiting for you,” Jeongguk replied softly and Taehyung smiled.

“You’re so annoying, come, let’s eat. What’s the schedule for today?” Taehyung asked as he walked towards the kitchen.

“I heard your dad is gonna be back this week. Namjoon, Yoongi and I have to show him the progress and everything and who do we suspect and things like that.”

“So, who do you suspect?” Taehyung asked.

“Yoongi is working on it. He has some… some… interviews scheduled for today. So, he’ll take care of it all. Oh and before I forget, I need a list of all the people you’ve been in touch with over the year. Like, even those creepy people who just won’t stop messaging.”

“Are you that jealous?” Taehyung teased.

“Oh, how I wish it was the jealousy,” Jeongguk said and kissed Taehyung’s cheeks before he moved to the other side to get himself some water.

“Hey, you said no touching,” Taehyung said with a smile spread on his lips.

“You’re irresistible, Kim Taehyung,” Jeongguk wanted it to come out as a joke but you could hear the honesty in it.

“What are we doing here?” Seokjin asked. As soon as he got up, Namjoon asked him if he could join him outside. When Seokjin started walking about, Namjoon said it would be best if he changes into warmer clothes as they might have to go across the street to some shop. Seokjin did. And now they stood outside an expensive restaurant.

“We’re here for brunch,” Namjoon said nonchalantly.

“Namjoon,” Seokjin said firmly. His eyes still fixed on the restaurant.

“Let’s just get in and eat something, if you don’t like it, we can always leave.”

“You don’t like my food?”

“What?”

Seokjin turned to face Namjoon, “You knew I would make breakfast, is this why we’re here? Because you don’t wanna eat my breakfast.”

“No, of course that’s not the case.”

“Then why are we here?” Seokjin sounded a little sad and Namjoon wasn’t fond of that tone.

“I… I didn’t know how to ask you out, I wanted to have a meal with you… just you.” Namjoon looked down. His heart rate went up. This felt like too close to a confession.

“Is this a date?” Seokjin turned to Namjoon and said softly.

“I mean, it doesn’t have to be-”

“Thank God, because I wouldn’t want our first date to be like this, I thought we were just going to a shop and dressed according to that and not according to a five-star restaurant.”

“You don’t oppose a date with me?”

“Have I ever made it sound like I don’t enjoy your company?” Seokjin asked and Namjoon just smiled. They walked in and Namjoon got them a table.

The place was big, of course that’s what you expect from an overpriced five-star restaurants. They sat near an open area because Namjoon wanted to look at the view.

“So, what do you wanna have?” Namjoon asked as he flipped through the menu.

“Everything is so expensive, no,” Seokjin went through the price.

“Please, I earn enough to spend it on good food,” Namjoon said and Seokjin smirked. “Show off,” Seokjin mumbled under his breath.

“Do you want something heavy or light?” Namjoon asked.

“I like it when my mouth is full of food. Because when I swallow, a large amount of it goes down. And it feels like I’m almost going to choke. I really like that feeling. So, heavy,” Seokjin said casually and flipped another page.

Ironically Namjoon choked. And Seokjin looked at him funny. “W-what?” Namjoon said in disbelief.

“I was telling you how I like things, I wanna eat heavy today, you?” Seokjin smiled and Namjoon could swear that Kim Seokjin would be the end of him.

Seokjin excused himself for a bathroom break while Namjoon ordered and when he got back he noticed a man sitting in his chair. Seokjin stopped by Namjoon and smiled.

“Seokjin, he’s Mr. Choi, he’ll be joining us,” Namjoon said politely and Seokjin greeted him. He looked around and a waiter got him a chair as well.

The thing about big restaurants are that they have huge tables, so the three of them sitting at one wasn't crowded.

“Am I interrupting a date?” Mr. Choi said and Namjoon laughed lightly.

“He’s a good friend,” Namjoon said politely.

“I won't lie, I’m here to convince your friend to take our offer,” Mr. Choi said to Seokjin and Seokjin then looked at Namjoon in confusion.

“He has some of the best guys working for him. And we need help, our business is growing at a massive rate and we need security. The competition is threatened.”

“This sounds like a good offer though, you should always be up for a new challenge,” Seokjin said enthusiastically.

“I like this youngman, you should learn a little from him,” Mr. Choi said to Namjoon and Seokjin turned to smile at him and that's when he noticed his posture. He sat straight, his chest out and his shoulders firm, a smile on his face that looked painful.

“I’ll teach him a thing or two,” Seokjin said and placed his hand on Namjoon’s knee under the table. Namjoon turned to look at Seokjin and Seokjin just smiled a him. Seokjin rubbed his thumb in a circle over Namjoon’s knee and Namjoon dropped his shoulders visibly.

“It’ll be really hard, Sir. Like I’ve mentioned before, we already have a lot on our plate, I don’t have enough manpower to help you out right now,” Namjoon said apologetically.

“You can drop some,” Mr. Choi suggested and Seokjin looked at him.

“I’m afraid that’s not possible, we’ve already signed contracts with them,” Namjoon said.

“I’ll cover the cancellation cost. You don’t have to worry about it,” Mr. Choi suggested and it made Seokjin uncomfortable.

“Sir, you seem like someone with a lot of money, Namjoon is really clumsy, you can do better,” Seokjin said and leaned towards Mr. Choi, his hand still firm on Namjoon’s knee.

“You’re smart, boy,” Mr. Choi laughed.

“He even got his hand injured last week, I don’t think he’s up for a challenge like you,” Seokjin added and Mr. Choi laughed. Namjoon just smiled.

“Keep him around,” Mr. Choi said as he stood up to attend a call. He turned towards the two of them and said, “I’ll get going now, wife is on the call, it’ll be long. Namjoon, do call me if there’s an update.”

They said goodbyes and Seokjin went to sit in front of Namjoon like before.

“Do you still wanna eat?” Seokjin asked.

“Can we go home?” Namjoon asked instead.

“Sure, do you want me to cancel our order?” Seokjin asked.

“I’ll ask them to pack it up, we can eat at home,” Namjoon said and Seokjin looked at him in confusion.

“A friend of mine is a manager here, he’ll do us the favour.” Namjoon stood up and Seokjin followed him out.

As they walked out Seokjin held out his hand, “Keys.”

“I can drive,” Namjoon said.

“And so can I, give me the keys.”

“I’m fine, I can really drive,” Namjoon said and pulled out his keys.

“Kim Namjoon, keys. Now.” Namjoon walked towards Seokjin and handed him the keys.

“Now was that really that hard?” Seokjin said as he sat down.

“You can be very dominant,” Namjoon said lightly.

“Yeah and I don’t mind being dominated as well,” Seokjin said and Namjoon just laughed. Namjoon liked this part of him. How Seokjin would just make him feel at ease without knowing.

“Are you dropping hints? First the choking and now this?” Namjoon asked as he reached for his seatbelt.

“Hints for what? The way you’re talking it’s like you’ll tie me up on the bed and I’ll enjoy it,” Seokjin said and smirked.

“I don’t know why I thought that maybe this time I’d get you,” Namjoon said as he laughed. He rubbed his face a smile on his face.

“No no, go straight,” Namjoon said as Seokjin turned the indicator for a right.

“Where are we going?” Seokjin asked and Namjoon remained silent.

“There will be too many people at your place right now,” Namjoon said.

“Are we… no… are we going to your place?” Seokjin asked and turned to steal a glance at Namjoon.

“We don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“Why would you do this to me?” Seokjin yelled and Namjoon dropped his head back.

“I’m sorry, it’s a bad idea. Let’s just go back-”

“You’re taking me to all these important places and I haven’t even prepared myself for any of it.”

“You look amazing, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“I know I look amazing, that was the least of my concern. I just… I wasn’t mentally prepared for any of it.”

Namjoon very hesitantly placed his hand on Seokjin’s headrest and touched Seokjin’s ear. “You’ll be okay.”

Within seconds Seokjin’s ear turned red, prominent red colour, not pink, red.

“Wow, so that’s your weakness,” Namjoon said and laughed. Seokjin kept his eyes on the road and took directions from Namjoon every now and then.

“What?”

“You like touches. I’ve noticed it before as well.” Namjoon was smiling.

“Shut up. I don’t like touches from everyone.” Seokjin sat straight.

“Should I consider myself special?” Namjoon turned to face Seokjin. That was the advantage he had at the passenger’s side. He could look and just look without interruption.

“I’ve  literally been with you since last night. That should speak for itself,” Seokjin said and Namjoon could see a hint of smile on his face.

“We didn’t spend the night together though.”

“Because your drunk ass couldn’t handle me,” Seokjin said and mock laughed.

“I’m sober now,” Namjoon said softly.

“I’m driving, Kim Namjoon, do you want to cause an accident,” Seokjin yelled. Namjoon stayed quiet for the rest of the drive. 

They reach Namjoon’s apartment and it was huge. Way bigger than Jeongguk’s but a little smaller than Taehyung’s.

“Impressive, right?” Namjoon nudged Seokjin’s shoulder and pushed him in.

“You do work hard, I see,” Seokjin said and ran his eyes all over the place. It reminded him of Jeongguk’s. The place looked good, tidy but not lived in.

“Do you even come here?” Seokjin asked.

“Sometimes, whenever I finish work on time,” Namjoon mentioned. “I generally stay at my office, there’s a room inside my office, and it’s pretty decent as well.”

“So, you don’t sleep at this mansion but choose to sleep in that office?”

“If you say it like that.”

“If I had a place like this, I would always come back home,” Seokjin said and turned towards Namjoon, he then realized just how close they stood. Face just inches apart but neither of them moved away.

“I can give you a key and then I’ll have a reason to come back home,” Namjoon said in almost a whisper. Seokjin felt dizzy. He wasn’t sure if Namjoon’s voice was supposed to sound that serious, he tried to find a joke in it but Namjoon’s eyes were fixed on him.

‘Kiss me,’ Seokjin wanted to say but instead he said, “You shouldn’t work this hard, get some rest. Your body will last longer.” Seokjin moved back and looked around the room.

He was nervous.

“What’s the deal with Mr. Choi? He seemed off,” Seokjin asked instead and played went ahead to sit on the couch.

“Ah, that. Well, when we started, he contacted me. Yoongi and I got super excited because it was a huge deal to us, Mr. Choi’s business is big and he is was paying us thrice the amount of money we expected. We had around ten guys back then. All trained and certified.” Namjoon went ahead and sat on the other side of the couch.

“We made a contract for them and sent it over, they replied pretty fast, almost within a day. They asked if it’s okay if they can merge their and our contracts together and offer us a new one. And we were fine with it.”

Seokjin noticed the distance between them but doesn’t mention it.

“We took a look at the contract and found that they have removed a whole clause from the contract, where we’ve mentioned that if we ever found any illegal activity in the business, we’re obliged to take it to the cops.” This had Seokjin’s whole attention. He folded his hands and tilted his head.

“Yeah and we asked about it, why it wasn’t mentioned and they said they must have forgotten about it, so they sent a new one. But they changed the clause, it read if we ever found something illegal, we’ll have to report it to their legal team and they’ll take action. We can’t go to the cops because they see it as us leaking information to the third party.”

“Did you get your lawyers to have a look at it? Can they do this?” Seokjin asked.

“We were a startup, we couldn’t afford a real lawyer. Yoongi, Jeongguk and I were the lawyers, we would search up everything, every word that looked suspicious, every phrase that seemed off. We used to take days just going through the contracts.”

“Did you tell him you wouldn’t do it? Is that why he was there today?”

“We told them we didn’t think our ideas on the contract matches. Yoongi suggested that we work at least a month and get the money and just say we can’t do it now, the money was really good. But Jeongguk just wasn’t comfortable, so we decided to just not do it. I told him and he got… weird. He started yelling in a very professional, sophisticated manner and as I was going out I saw a bag of guns, unzipped and I guess he noticed that I noticed. He started sending his men to look out on us.”

“What the hell!”

“Yeah, like we shifted places at least five to six times before I went back to him and I told him that we don’t wanna be involved. He said that he wanted me to sign a contract. It was just so that I’ll never open my mouth over what I saw and I said I’ll never tell a soul. He said if I tell anyone, he’ll go after the people I cherish and I signed. He made Yoongi and Jeongguk sign it as well.”

“That’s… that must have been hard.”

“Yoongi was pissed, he was so pissed, he legitimately wanted to do something. He hated it all, but Jeongguk talked him into signing. The cops can’t give us protection no matter how much they say they can. Being in the field I’m in, you have to put a blindfold on at times.” Namjoon said and ran his hands through his hair.

“Well, I haven’t seen his men ever since that day, so we both are keeping our ends of that contract. He is also one of the reason we keep our families on the low.” Namjoon walked over to the kitchen and got himself a glass of water.

“Well, he also said to not tell a soul and you told me,” Seokjin said, tried to change the topic towards a lighter end.

“Well, be on the lookout, he might come for you now.”

It took Seokjin a fraction of second before he understood what Namjoon meant by that. Namjoon has said he would come for the people he cherish and the smile on Namjoon’s face was clear to indicate he did that on purpose.

“Can you stop flirting with me?” Seokjin yelled. His ears went red and Namjoon laughed.

“You’re one to say,” Namjoon said and Seokjin stood up.

“How many rooms are here? Your house really looks big.” Seokjin changed the topic.

“Wow, so we’re doing that now. Well why don’t you give yourself a tour? See what you find, I’ll reheat the food. I’m starving.”

Seokjin gave him a nod and went ahead. Namjoon kept his eyes on Seokjin till Seokjin disappeared in one of the rooms. He went back to reheating. Almost slipped the knife which should have had nothing to do with the routine. Once the microwave beeped the final second, he called out for Seokjin but got no response.

“Jin?” Namjoon called out again.

“Jinnie?” Namjoon raised his voice and yet no reply.

“Don’t tell me you got lost? My house isn’t that big,” Namjoon said and walked towards the room he saw Seokjin got in. The room was empty.

He walked towards the other one and said, “The food is gonna go cold. Keep reheating food isn’t good for health. You should know better.”

No response and another empty room. Then he went inside his room and said, “I swear if you Jump-”

“Bhoo,” Seokjin yelled and Namjoon looked at him with big eyes. He looked just as shaken as Seokjin expected and Seokjin couldn’t stop laughing.

“This is not funny,” Namjoon said and walked towards Seokjin who was still laughing like it was the best things he has seen in ages.

“You should have seen your face.”

“I wanna kiss yours,” Namjoon gathered all his courage when he said that.

Seokjin stopped laughing, he looked at him, his expressions unreadable.

“Then do it,” Seokjin said. He wished it sounded confident and not nervous.

Namjoon walked in one swift moment and slammed Seokjin into the wall. Maybe used a little too much force because Seokjin’s head bangged into the wall. It wasn’t painful but you could hear it.

“Namjoon,” Seokjin yelled and rubbed at his head, Namjoon rushed his hands to Seokjin’s head as well and started rubbing.

“I’m so sorry, I… I got nervous.,” Namjoon said as he rubbed Seokjin’s head and Seokjin laughed.

“I’m so sorry, I messed up. I just… I didn’t… I thought you would like-” Seokjin pressed his lips to Namjoon’s. Namjoon’s hand already in Seokjin’s hair and Seokjin moved his hands towards Namjoon’s neck. Namjoon was surprised. Mostly because he thought he lost his only chance but then he moved his body.

Pressed his body into Seokjin’s and moved Seokjin backwards. This time, he didn’t bang Seokjin’s head in the wall. His moved his hand out of Seokjin’s hair and placed them of both sides of Seokjin’s head. He deliberately pressed his body into Seokjin again, this time with a little weight and Seokjin’s grip tighten around Namjoon’s neck, he pulled him in as well and Namjoon smiled.

Then the microwave spoke up and Seokjin laughed, loudly, his lips still ghosting on Namjoon’s. Namjoon pulled back a little and he could swore he had never seen a man this breathtaking in this life.

“You could have at least shut that microwave of yours,” Seokjin said and looked at Namjoon and Namjoon felt shy, he looked down and just smiled.

“Come, let’s eat, you said you were hungry,” Seokjin said and pulled at Namjoon’s sleeve.

Namjoon felt a little dizzy with all of it. Kim Seokjin. Him.

 

Namjoon’s phone rang just as they walked out the room. “Hey Yoongi,” Namjoon said, clearly in a happy mood.

“I would ask why you’re so happy but I need to ask something urgently, are you free?” Yoongi asked.

“You mean free to talk?” Namjoon got serious. Yoongi never called to just talk.

“No, am I stupid? No, free as in to look after Yeoun?” Yoongi asked and Namjoon looked over at Seokjin who was getting the plates.

“I mean, I’m home with Seokjin, but if you need me, I can come over.”

“Seokjin’s at your house?” Yoongi asked.

“Yeah, we’re just about to have lunch.”

“I don’t know if I need an update on that as well or not. But it’s okay, enjoy with him or him, however you both want it, I support it,” Yoongi said and Namjoon was glad Seokjin couldn’t hear it.

“Why don’t you ask Hoseok? You told him about her, so why not? I know your brother’s at work right now.”

“I don’t think Hoseok would want that.”

“Let him decide.”

Yoongi soon hung up.

Yoongi was anxious, he wasn’t sure if he should call Hoseok for the most part because he had to meet Jimin in just few hours and he just felt unsettled.

Hoseok called him instead. Yoongi hesitated before picking up.

“Are you home?” Hoseok asked.

“Yeah, why?”

“Taehyung called to ask and I asked him to call you instead and he said you yelled at him.”

“I didn’t yell at him,” Yoongi said and Yeoun ran to sat on his lap.

“Did you raise your voice to talk to him?” Hoseok asked.

“That was only because he was asleep,” Yoongi mentioned.

“So, you yelled. Leave the kid alone, he is going through a lot.”

“I was in a rush,” Yoongi said and hugged Yeoun from the back and adjusted her so she won’t fall off the edge of his knee.

“Are you okay? You sound… stressed,” Hoseok mentioned and Yoongi wasn’t sure if it was a wild guess of he has noticed his tone as well.

“You didn’t even see me before you left,” Yoongi said with a pout. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it but he wanted to change the subject.

Hoseok laughed and Yoongi felt better. Yoongi remembered the first thing he has noticed about Hoseok and that was how easy he laughed. How he laughed like that’s the best thing he’s heard or seen. He laughed like he wanted people to be happy.

“You were asleep and I didn’t wanted to wake you up,” Hoseok said. Yeoun asked who he was talking to and Yoongi mouthed ‘Hobi’.

“Hobi?” Yeoun question and Yoongi gave her a nod.

“Is Yeoun with you?”

“I’m her parent, she is always with me,” Yoongi said.

“Do you have things planned for today?” Hoseok asked and Yoongi felt guilty.

“I’m just home with Yeoun,” Yoongi said.

“Do you… do you want me to come over?” Hoseok asked with hesitation.

“Yeoun, do you want Hobi uncle to come over?” Yoongi asked Yeoun in a baby voice. She gave him a small nod.

“She said she don’t wanna see you ever,” Yoongi replied.

“What? But why?” Hoseok sounded nervous and Yoongi laughed.

“You said the whole Min family is whipped for you, so why ask? She said you should come over,” Yoongi said and Hoseok sound happy after that. He said he would be there within an hour right after Yoongi and Yeoun are done with lunch.

When Hoseok arrived Yeoun felt shy and stood behind Yoongi.

“You’re so small and then Yeoun, an even smaller being, using you for protection, this is so cute,” Hoseok said as he went on his knees.

“Hey, Yeoun. Don’t you remember? I’m your friend, Hobi,” Hoseok said sat down on his legs.

“She remembers you but she’s just shy now,” Yoongi said.

“She remembers me?” Hoseok looked surprised.

“Yeah, she even asked about you the next day,” Yoongi mentioned.

“She did?” Hoseok looked up at Yoongi.

“Yeoun, why don’t you go get Hobi some water?” Yoongi asked and Yeoun ran towards the kitchen.

“I can get it myself,” Hoseok said to Yoongi.

“I’m teaching her things,” Yoongi said.

“She’s only two.”

“The earlier she learns the better for her,” Yoongi mentioned and Hoseok just laughed. Yeoun came back with a bottle of water and Hoseok took it, thanked her and sat down next to her. She laughed. Hoseok laughed and Yoongi smiled.

“You wanna play or sleep?” Yoongi asked Yeoun. They all sat on different couches. But Yeoun sat close by Hoseok.

“Play,” Yeoun said shyly.

“But I want work,” Yoongi pouted and she looked over at Hoseok.

“But Hobi can play with you?” Yoongi looked over at Hoseok and Hoseok shook his head. Yeoun looked angry.

“I mean yeah, get your toys and Hoba will play with you,” Yoongi said and Yeoun ran to her room.

“Hoba?” Hoseok questioned and went to sit next to Yoongi.

“She won’t let me call you Hobi, she thinks only she has the right, we fought because of your name. She said she is your friend so she can call you Hobi but I can’t.”

Hoseok laughed, he felt good, he felt nice. Wanted.

“And she gets confused over Hoseok, it’s not that hard a name, she can pronounce Jeongguk and Namjoon but she can’t pronounce Hoseok? I think it’s a game.”

“Yoongi, God, have you always had been this cute?” Hoseok said and leaned to press Yoongi’s face with his hands.

“Shut up, now I’m stuck with Hoba.”

“I like it,” Hoseok said and booped Yoongi’s nose with his index finger.

“I like it too, I just thought you’d be a bit more dramatic about it,” Yoongi said and smiled because Hoseok was laughing again.

Yeoun came and asked if they can play in her room as she had way too many toys. Hoseok waved towards Yoongi and followed Yeoun inside.

The realization hit Yoongi hard, that since Hoseok came over, he wasn’t on the edge, he wasn’t nervous. He was just himself and it was just the three of them. Yoongi sat there for a moment, let himself overhear the laughters coming from Yeoun’s room. He smiled.

  
  


“Yoongi… Yoongi?” Yoongi heard his name in whispers and then there was silence. It took Yoongi few seconds before he jolted up.

“What time is it?” Yoongi asked.

“Four thirtyish,” Hoseok checked his watch.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Yoongi said as he ran to room. He was supposed to meet Jimin in half an hour.

“Because you were sleeping peacefully, I thought you must be tired.”

“Where’s Yeoun?” Yoongi asked.

“She’s asleep as well.”

“I hate to do this, but… can you please be with her till I’m back?” Yoongi asked as he slid into his jeans and grabbed an oversized black hoodie. Because no matter what Jimin said, it wasn’t a date.

“Sure, of course. I don’t think she’ll be awake for a few hours. Are you meeting someone? Official business?” Hoseok asked and stood outside Yoongi’s room. Hoseok has never been inside his room. Never even had a glimpse.

Yoongi stayed quiet and Hoseok gave out a dry laugh, “You seem nervous. What time is your meeting?”

“Half an hour,” Yoongi replied.

“Yeah, so, you still have time, how far away is the place?”

“Half an hour,” Yoongi said.

“Well, then you’re doomed but they’ll love you. Or at least will like you if you just stop frowning at them.” This made Yoongi smile.

“Stop making me laugh, I’m serious,” Yoongi looked at Hoseok.

“You’ll do good,” Hoseok said. “Call me for an emergency and I’ll act like something came up and you have to be near me otherwise something would happen,” he added.

“Stop being so supportive,” Yoongi said with guilt.

“What? I can’t even cheer you up?” Hoseok folded his arms and leaned on the door.

“I’m meeting Jimin,” Yoongi said and his heartbeat went up. He couldn’t answer why.

“Jimin? Our Park Jimin?” Hoseok asked in confusion.

“Yes, your Park Jimin.”

“First of all, he’s  _ our _ Park Jimin. Second of all, you’re nervous because you’re meeting him?” Hoseok laughed and Yoongi couldn’t pinpoint why he was so scared of telling Hoseok that.

“I didn’t mean to laugh as if I’m laughing at you, it’s just the situation is funny,” Hoseok said when he saw that Yoongi looked uncomfortable.

“Where are you guys meeting?” Hoseok asked.

“That coffee shop near your place.”

“Are you kidding me? I wanted to take you out on a date there, Jimin beat me to it. We’ll find a new place. Tell him I said hi and that he should drink less,” Hoseok laughed and followed Yoongi in the living room.

“You’re okay with it?” Yoongi asked.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I be? It’s not like you’re double dating or something, because I don’t know about you but Jimin would never do that to me,” Hoseok said.

“I’ll give you a call when I leave.” Yoongi walked towards the main door and Hoseok followed.

“Take care, and please try something other than an americano, make something less strong,” Hoseok suggested and Yoongi turned to look at him again.

“Call me if you need anything or if Yeoun gets too much to handle, she gets bratty at times. Kids,” Yoongi said and rolled his eyes, Hoseok laughed and Yoongi swore that he could just kiss him there.

“I’ll see you late, enjoy. You’ll have a great time,” Hoseok said and Yoongi walked close to Hoseok. He got on his tiptoes to kiss Hoseok’s cheeks comfortably and he could feel a smile spreading on Hoseok’s face when he pulled back.

Yoongi arrived and Jimin was already there.

“You’re late,” Jimin said as soon as Yoongi took a seat opposite him.

“I got caught up at work.”

“You were sleeping,” Jimin corrected.

“How do you know this?”

“Hoseok told me.”

“You told Hoseok?” Yoongi asked. Was this a game to Jimin? Was he checking if Yoongi would tell Hoseok as well or not?

“You told Hoseok. Are you okay? Do you need more sleep?” Jimin asked as he leaned forward on the table.

“Why are we here?” Yoongi asked and then a person came and placed two glasses of coffee in front of them.

“We’re having coffee,” Jimin said playfully and thanked the waitress.

“Did you order for me?” Yoongi asked.

“I was gonna get you an americano but Hoseok asked me not to, so it’s kinda like Hoseok ordered for you.”

Yoongi wanted to start fresh, he just wanted the day to start all over again.

Yoongi took a sip of his coffee, “I drank, now what are we doing here?”

“You’re being so difficult. I just wanted to hangout.”

“Do you call all your hangouts ‘dates’?” Yoongi asked, visibly irritated and Jimin froze.

“Yoo-Yoongi, I like you, you’re a great guy but… I think you’re reading this wrong. It’s… I’m sorry but… I love Hoseok and I could never do this to him and if you think it’s a date and you went out on a date with another person, I’ll have to tell Hoseok.”

Yoongi was visibly confused now, “What?”

“I’m not interested in you in that way. I’m sorry, you’re a great guy but I’m… not interested. I thought things between you and Hoseok were finally well but… I’m sad to hear you’re still seeking out.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Yoongi asked.

“You called this a date. It’s not.”

“ _ You _ called this a date.”

“Me? When?”

“Last night when you called.”

Jimin laughed.

“I was so drunk, I’m so sorry, I don’t recall half of that conversation but somehow I remember meeting you here.”

“Jimin, I’m gonna ask you one last time, why am I here?” Yoongi was getting frustrated now.

“When I first met you and your group, I didn't think much of it. I thought you guys will do your work and will leave whenever the time is right. But then we all started growing closer. Namjoon is amazing, Jeongguk and I get along so well and at first you and I were okay as well. Like, we weren’t the best of friends but we were friendly.”

Yoongi just looked down at his coffee, he wasn't sure what Jimin was implying. That he isn’t social? Yeah, he knew that.

“Then you just started looking at me weird. Stopped talking with me. You would only answer things I’d ask you. I thought we would be friends. Good friends in fact. Namjoon and Jeongguk talk so highly of you and they said that it might take some time with you but you’ll finally crack but I guess that never happened with me. Then Hoseok, God, hoseok is so annoying when he talks about you,” Jimin laughed but Yoongi’s expression were unaffected.

“My point is, I thought we would be friends.” Jimin went silent and Yoongi processed what was said.

“You came into my friends life and they like you, every one of them and I thought that you and I would get along well as well but that never happened. You just… you just, I don’t know how to say it but you just seemed like you never liked me that much. I just wanted us to be friends. And then Taehyung told me that I’m your prime suspect.”

Yoongi stayed quiet, showed no emotion. It wasn’t like Taehyung wasn’t supposed to tell anyone but, for Yoongi, it was the most logical thing ever.

“I’m not sure why?” Jimin said and Yoongi wanted to laugh.

“I have evidence.”

“And they all point at me?”

“They don’t make you the only suspect, I’m not accusing you because things are a little more complicated than that but it doesn’t rule you out.” Yoongi wasn’t there to bullshit so he confessed.

“Ah, and can you tell me what they are?”

“So, you can know what our strategy is?” Yoongi crossed his arms over his chest.

“Taehyung is my soulmate,” Jimin said, pain evident in his voice. “The mere fact that you suspect me of wanting to hurt Taehyung is… it’s heartbreaking. Taehyung and I are soulmates in the most truest sense. I know him in and out, he knows me in and out. I would do anything for him. I can never harm him. I can never cause problems for him. I love him. I just… I just want you to trust me on that.”

Yoongi wasn’t the soft kind, he wasn’t the kind to just let people’s words get to him. He wasn’t emotionally invested like that. He was a logical person. He looked at facts and figures. And everything pointed against Jimin but there was just something about Jimin’s voice. The way he spoke, the way his eyes would look down every now and then because he felt hurt. The way his lips will part but no words would come out. The way he would just stir his already cold coffee blankly.

“Have you ever given your phone or laptop to anyone? For more than just few minutes?” Yoongi asked instead.

“What?”

“Does anyone else have access to your photo gallery?”

“What? No?”

“You don’t sound so confident.”

“Because I’m not sure what’s happening.”

“All the picture that we received from Mr. Kim were found on your phone as well.”

“You hacked into my phone?” Jimin looked uncomfortable but Yoongi showed no concern.

“I did my job.”

“Illegally.”

“Report me to the authorities then.”

“Taehyung and I do it all the time, we have this folder of different different angles and things, the whole ‘ugly picture project’ and you would know because you looked into my phone.” Jimin folded his hands defensively.

“I figured that, but why did you start sending the pictures to Mr. Kim and what do you want from him?”

“You hurt me, Min Yoongi.” Jimin sounded like he would breakdown any second but his expressions were strong, solid and pissed.

“After everything I told you, you still think it’s me.”

“Then point a finger at someone, I’m here to listen,” Yoongi said and mimicked Jimin’s expression.

“I don’t know, I just… My phone is synced with my laptop as much as I wanna help you, I can’t think of anyone who would do it anything like this.”

“Who all have used your phone lately or used your laptop?”

“I mean, I have given my laptop to people for a day or two because of work and all. Like, Seojoon and Bogum don’t live here and whenever they visit, they work on my laptop. ”

“Wait… Bogum? As in Park Bogum?” Yoongi looked at him with confused expression.

“Don’t tell me you’re suspecting him.” Jimin wanted to laugh.

“He’s on the list.”

“No way. I am not doing this. You’re not putting a finger on Bogum or on Seojoon. Wait till I mention Hyungsik and you’ll go gaga over him as well,” Jimin said out of frustration.

“Wow, I saw your expression, Yoongi. Don’t tell me all three of them are on the list. I can’t believe this.”

“I’m doing what’s required from me,” Yoongi sounded small, as if he wasn’t confident himself.

“You know Bogum and Taehyung used to be best friends, they still are really close but every time something happens, he’s always used as scapegoat. Mr. Kim’s PR team once mentioned how they would wanna replace Taehyung’s friends because they don’t think that Tae’s friends are productive influence on him. Something goes wrong, blame Bogum. Prank calls, blame Bogum. Prank messages, Blame Bogum. He doesn’t hang out with us as much as he used to because it was doing him more harm than good. He was suffering. The way Mr Kim’s people would look at him. Like he’s some trash kid. I will not let you put it on Bogum.” Yoongi was surprised how Jimin yelled all that in a tone that was harsh but not high.

“I’m not saying I’m blaming Bogum or Seojoon or Hyungsik or anyone, I can’t blame someone if I don’t have the proof. And I can’t reveal anything else.”

“I… I’m sorry… I guess I went a little overboard. I didn’t mean for it sound like I’m angry but i’m just frustrated. Taehyung loves them. I don’t know them very personally but… Taehyung has changed so many friends over the years, some just to please his parents and when he started getting attached he had to let them go. I can’t watch Taehyung get hurt like that again. I just… I don’t want you to mention anyone to Taehyung until you’re confident.”

“I know how to do my job, Jimin,” Yoongi said regretted it the very second. He never wanted it to sound rude of offensive but it did, so he added, “Thanks for your concern though, I guess I never actually realized just how Taehyung would be feeling in all of it, I was just too invested in getting the person behind it. So, yeah. Thanks for letting me know.”

And Jimin smiled.

“So, are we gonna try and be friends now?” Jimin asked and Yoongi rolled his eyes, Jimin laughed. Maybe they would be friends now. Maybe Yoongi would just stop seeing Jimin as a threat but Yoongi couldn’t let his guard down. Jimin still couldn’t explain a lot of this.

“I need your help now,” Yoongi said.

“Sure, anything for Taehyung.”

“I need you to send me a list of all the people who have used your laptop. And mention the date, month, purpose, whatever you can recall. I want to erase your name from the list but it won’t be that easy.”

“Sure, of course.” They stayed for fifteen-twenty more minutes. Talked about this and that, Jimin talked about Taehyung and Bogum, Seojoon and Hyungsik, Yoongi paid attention to the details.

They talked more about their groups of friends and their relationship with Taehyung because Yoongi was still on a job.

They left soon after and Yoongi couldn’t stop thinking about some things that were mentioned.

 

Taehyung and Jeongguk sat for lunch with Taehyung’s parents. Their homecoming was a surprise from their end and it sure as hell was a surprise to Taehyung. Unlike Jeongguk, Taehyung was only in an oversized shirt. Which, if they knew better, would have guessed it was Jeongguk’s. Jeongguk went to his room to change, he changed into a suit and then came back and greeted the Kims again.

“Have lunch with us, Jeon, if you don’t have plans.” How was Jeongguk even supposed to say no. That’s how he got stuck on the table. He sat right next to Taehyung and opposite the Kims.

“I hope our son listened to you well,” Mrs. Kim said and Jeongguk smiled politely.

“Taehyung, I hope you haven’t troubled the young man,” Mr. Kim said.

“Oh no, dad, I’ve been kind to him,” Taehyung smiled and Jeongguk tried his best not to. Taehyung was about to slide his hand on Jeongguk’s eye when Jeongguk noticed, he excused himself and got water for everyone. He adjusted his seat so it’s a little father from Taehyung’s reach.

“Jeon, can you drop by my office tomorrow morning?” Mr. Kim asked.

“Sure, sir. Do you want me to bring Namjoon and Yoongi as well?”

“No no, I don’t think I’ll get the time for that big a meeting, I just want to get updates from you. If ten in the morning works?” Mr. Kim asked and it wasn’t like Jeongguk had an option of saying no.

“You can take the day off as well, we’ll be here for the day and we haven’t seen Taehyung for so long,” Mrs. Kim said and Jeongguk gave her a polite note.

Jeongguk couldn’t have stayed, it was getting awkward. He couldn’t stop picturing Taehyung’s lips on him whenever one of the Kims would speak to him. It was like he was doing something illegal.

He informed the guards outside the house that he would be out for the day and then he dropped a message to Namjoon, asked him to inform Seokjin that the Kims were back in town. He called Yoongi next but when he couldn’t reach him he called Hoseok.

“Yoongi is out with Jimin?” Jeongguk couldn’t believe his ears. Was it really happening? Yoongi would never, if he didn't have a plan. But they never discussed anything.

“Yeah, funny right. I wasn't even invited.” Hoseok sounded distracted, as if he was busy doing something else as well.

“I wasn’t even informed.”

“Well, then I should probably feel lucky.”

“Where are you?” Jeongguk asked. He sat outside his own apartment inside his car.

“I’m at Yoongi’s.”

“You’re at Yoongi’s while Yoongi is out?”

“Yeah.”

“Are you… are you alone?” Jeongguk hesitated.

“I’m here with Yeoun,” Hoseok said and laughed.

“You... you… he… what is going on?”

“Yoongi told me,” Hoseok laughed again.

“Are you guys getting married or something? What even is going on?” Jeongguk was so surprised he couldn’t think of why Yoongi would expose that part of him to someone so soon.

“You wish. Do you wanna come over? You sound like you’re free.”

“Can I? Sure. Yeah, Mr. and Mrs. Kim are back, so, I had to leave.”

“Ah, no one boning Taehyung, I see.” Jeongguk laughed as soon as Hoseok said that.

“Just come over.” Hoseok hung up.

When Jeongguk came, Hoseok had to leave. Yoongi still wasn’t there. It was only a little after seven when Yoongi arrived and Jeongguk laughed at him.

“So, you and Park Jimin, huh?” Yoongi threw the cushion at Jeongguk.

“Why did you meet him?”

“He asked me to meet him.”

“And? What was it about?” Jeongguk asked.

“He wanted to tell me how he’s not the guy I should be suspicious of.”

“Did he give you names?” Jeongguk asked and Yoongi stayed quiet.

“Where’s Namjoon? I don’t wanna repeat my stories twice, I wanna speak at once.” Yoongi dialed Namjoon and asked him to drop by as well.

“Why are you here anyway?” Yoongi asked Jeongguk.

“What? I’ve missed you.”

“Stop bullshiting me. The Kims kicked you out?”

“They didn’t kick me out.”

“Sure.”

Namjoon dropped a message and informed them he would be late. Yoongi made dinner. Yeoun treats Jeongguk like family, she has always been that way with him. Maybe it was because Jeongguk became his age whenever he was around her, or maybe it was because he made faces at her and made her laugh.

She sat beside Jeongguk and they all ate. She forced Jeongguk to tuck her into bed and Yoongi stayed outside.

Yoongi dropped a message to Namjoon and asked him to call and not ring the doorbell and Namjoon said he was just outside. Yoongi stayed by the door for a minute before he saw Namjoon appear.

“You said you were outside.”

“I said ‘just’ outside.” Namjoon let himself in.

“She’s asleep,” Jeongguk said in a whisper and sat down on Yoongi’s couch.

Yoongi would never admit it but he has missed it, just the three of them. It has been a long time since they’ve been alone together.

“Where were you stuck?” Jeongguk asked Namjoon and Yoongi swore he saw a blush. He rolled his eyes.

“I dropped Seokjin at the Kims and Mrs. Kim saw me, invited me in, we had coffee and all that stuff. It was so awkward because she kept looking between Seokjin and I and we had a whole Taehyung in between us.”

“Well, we all can say we had a shitty day,” Jeongguk said and dropped his head on the cushion.

“What happened with you?”

“His make out session was cut short by the Kims,” Yoongi said and Namjoon laughed. Jeongguk hoped it was the case.

“Talking about making out, so, you told Hoseok about Yeoun.” Jeongguk crossed his arms and a smile bright on his face.

“How does that have anything to do with making out. My kid is involved for god’s sake.”

“You know that’s not what I meant. So tell us.”

“There’s nothing to tell.”

“Oh! Come on, how is he? I mean i know how he is but tell us more. Look at Namjoon! Obviously  _ he _ knows! I don’t wanna be left in the dark.”

“In Hoseok’s language, The Mins are whipped for him.” Yoongi crossed his arms and stared at Jeongguk, as if daring him to laugh. Jeongguk pressed his lips tight and just looked over at Namjoon who was holding his breath so he wouldn’t laugh either.

“So, it’s true. Cupid hit the Kims when we entered,” Jeongguk said and Namjoon laughed.

“You guys are disgusting.”

“Anyway, how was your date with Jimin?”

“It wasn’t a date,” Yoongi defended.

“You went out on a date? With Jimin? He’s Hoseok’s friend, Yoongi.”

“I’m not telling you guys anything,” Yoongi said and Jeongguk pouted. Yoongi rolled his eyes.

“Park Bogum,” Yoongi said and everyone stayed silent.

“What about him?” Namjoon asked.

“Jimin told me him and Taehyung were friends. And not like any friends, they were close. Good friends.”

“Taehyung has never mentioned him,” Jeongguk said and folded his arms.

“That’s because he feels guilty.”

“Why?” Namjoon asked.

“Bogum was at Taehyung’s party as well, Taehyung greeted him and they sat for a while but most of the time Bogum was with his friends. Anyway, the point his, the Kims and their associates have been really disrespectful towards Bogum. Jimin said that there was a time when Mr. Kim’s PR team even asked him that if he allowed it, they’d get Taehyung new friends.” Yoongi felt angry as those words left his mouth.

“That’s messed up,” Namjoon said and Jeongguk stayed quiet.

“Yeah and well I don’t know if they offered it to Taehyung as well or not, but Bogum and Taehyung fell apart soon after. He was basically a scapegoat for them. Like, they just kept blaming Bogum for everything.”

“I remember Bogum,” Jeongguk said and sat straight.

“What about him?”

“When I was doing research on all the people and everything, Bogum’s name came up as a client as well. He used to be a model for Taehyung. But, that doesn’t add up. Because he never had much money. I looked at his background and before he left, he was struggling so hard, he couldn’t pay his rent for four months and was asked to leave. That’s when he got an internship in the US and he left,” Jeongguk said in concentration.

“But he’s back now. He’s been in Korea since the same time Mr. Kim started receiving those images.” Yoongi went to sit opposite Namjoon and Jeongguk.

“This could be a huge coincidence. I don’t know,” Jeongguk said and hung his head low.

“Bring up Bogum to Taehyung,” Namjoon suggested and looked at Jeongguk.

“What? Why me?”

“Because he’s close to you, he trusts you and he’ll open up to you. He’ll tell you things he won’t tell us.”

“It’s like I’m using him, I don’t… it’s not like I don’t wanna ask him but I feel bad.”

“Get a grip, Jeongguk,” Yoongi snapped and Namjoon looked at him. “Yoongi, stop.”

“No, you’re letting your emotions speak over you. That person can and will harm Taehyung if we don’t do something about it. Taehyung was shot at, may I remind you. You can’t think with your heart, you have to do things even if you don’t like it,” Yoongi tried to keep his voice low just for the sake of Yeoun.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Jeongguk said in a low voice.

“If you’re not gonna ask him, I’ll have to. Because I would rather we know what’s happening than we don’t.”

They all stayed quiet for a while. A little hesitation in the air.

“What I think Yoongi is saying is,” Namjoon started again, “Bogum is back and he seems to have a motive. We just need to know how Taehyung and Bogum really were.”

Jeongguk stayed quiet. They all had dinner and Jeongguk asked if he could stay over. Namjoon said that they all should stay over and Yoongi was left with no choice.

“I have to meet Mr. Kim tomorrow morning,” Jeongguk said.

“Why? Do we have to go as well?” Namjoon asked.

“Nah, I asked but he said he just want to have a quick chat with us, to know what;s the progress. Should I mention Bogum to him?”

“Don’t,” Yoongi said, “Bringing him up will just do more bad than any good. I don’t want him to do anything out of impulse. So, let’s not say anything till we’re confident.”

“Okay, where are you going? I thought we were all sleeping here?” Jeongguk said as he noticed Yoongi leave for his room. They had spread mattresses in the living room, so they all could fit together.

“I… I have work.”

“What work? Do you need any help? I can come, I don’t feel like sleeping myself.” Jeongguk was already halfway up and Yoongi visibly sighed and clenched his phone on his hand.

“Ohhhhh, ahhhhh, you’re gonna be sexting Hoseok,” Jeongguk cooed and laid down again.

“Shut up,” Yoongi said and went to his room.

“You didn’t even deny it.”

Once inside, Yoongi closed to door. He dropped a message to Hoseok and asked him if he was free and Hoseok said he was. Yoongi would be a liar if he said his heart raced for no reason. The reason was good enough when a bright ‘Hello’ rang his ears.

“Is Yeoun still up?” Hoseok asked.

“She’s asleep, Jeongguk and Namjoon are here,” Yoongi mentioned.

“Oh, so it’s a sleepover?”

“You can say that.”

“Why am I never invited to any?” Hoseok said in a low voice. Talking at night was risky, scary. For Yoongi it was like, he couldn’t draw a line where reality ended and a dream begin. Just a few days ago Hoseok seemed like a dream. Just a few days ago when Yoongi went to bed, he would think of what it would be like if he was on a call with Hoseok, or if Hoseok was with him. Now, it was a reality but it still felt like he was dreaming.

“You wanna have a sleepover at my place?” Yoongi asked.

“I wanna have a sleepover with you.” Hoseok laughed. “I’m trying to flirt, please cooperate.”

“That’s your attempt at flirting?” Yoongi was smiling but he wouldn’t let Hoseok believe it.

“At least I’m trying.”

“You need to try harder,” Yoongi said.

“Let me be there with you then.” Yoongi could hear Hoseok's smile through the phone.

“You’re too much,” Yoongi said over his smile and Hoseok laughed.

“But seriously, I don’t wanna force it on you but I think we should, at least have a night together,”

“What are you implying?”

“Not… not that… Yoongi, stop thinking about it,” Hoseok laughed again. “I meant it more in a way, that we should have some time to ourselves. I would wanna get to know you in the process as well. And it doesn’t even have to be when Yeoun is around. Moreover like when she’s at daycare or with your brother or when she’s asleep.”

“I’m not doing anything when Yeoun is in the house, even if she’s next door.”

“That’s not what I said,” Hoseok said. “We don’t have to do anything.”

“So, you don’t wanna do anything?” Yoongi sounded deflated and he hated the way his voice sounded that second.

“No, Yoongi, no… this whole conversation has been a mess. Yes, of course I want us to do things and I want you to do things to me and I want to do things to you-”

“Don’t elaborate,” Yoongi could feel the rush of the blood. He knew that Hoseok must have thought of it at least once but having him verbally say such things had a different impact.

“You know what I mean, right?” Hoseok said silently and Yoongi just nodded, he knew Hoseok couldn’t see him but he couldn’t utter words.

“Yeah, well, I mean. I wanna spend time with you, Yoongi. Talking on the phone is great. Like, I wait the whole day for you to just drop me a message. Or call me. But I… I want you around as well. Be able to talk to you, see you smile, see you laugh, see you be grumpy when coffee isn’t made according to your style. I wanna… I wanna hold you.”

“You sound so sappy,” Yoongi said instead. The emotions were building up in him, he wanted everything with Hoseok but he felt like it was too soon, it wasn’t practical. He felt stupid as well but he just wanted to be sure. He already knew what his feelings for Hoseok was. But he wasn’t sure if Hoseok saw it as an endgame just like him.

“You can’t outsmart me, Min Yoongi,” Hoseok laughed. “I’ve started noticing your habits.”

“You owe me a kiss,” Yoongi said and his cheeks were on fire. His neck was turning red. He felt like a kid.

“I thought you'd never ask,” Hoseok said and Yoongi smiled.

“I thought you were so different,” Hoseok said and yoongi frowned. He has heard it over the years, from different people under different circumstances.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know, like, at first I thought you’re unapproachable. Like, you were just someone I could only have a crush on or just someone I could think of, not someone who would give me nicknames, pouts when they’re angry, call me at night because they’ve missed me. You’re very similar in all aspects but just different in emotions. Or more like… I don’t know what I’m saying.”

Yoongi stayed quiet. It was different, for sure. People always assume that he’s cold, dark and that he would be anywhere where he wouldn’t have to socialize. Out of those only one thing was right about him.

“I don’t talk much in general,” Yoongi said.

“No no, I know that. I know that, it’s just. You talk… I mean, you take initiative to talk to me and… that makes me happy. Like, you tell me things and I feel happy. It’s a good feeling, Yoongi.”

Yoongi could hear the sincerity in Hoseok’s voice and he remained quiet.

“How about in three days?” Yoongi asked.

“What in three days?” Hoseok asked, his voice very confused.

“Sleepover, whatever you wanna call it. I can ask for Namjoon or my brother to look after Yeoun so we have some… personal time together.”

“Are you for real?” Hoseok’s voice a little louder than before.

“Yeha, let’s do it then.”

“But I don’t want you to just do it because I want to, and Yeoun is there-”

“You don’t have to worry, I’ll take care of it. And… yes, I want to. Just… not my place. Because Yeoun will be here. So, your place.”

“Yes, yes yes yes, of course, yes. Wow. Min Yoongi in my house.” Yoongi smiled over the words.

“I’ve been to your house before as well,” Yoongi mentioned.

“And then you ran away and never came back.”

“Let’s never talk about that,” Yoongi said and sulked into his bed.

“Will you be in my bed as well?” Hoseok asked softly and Yoongi has a wild imagination.

“I’m hanging up now,” Yoongi said instead.

“Just confirm it okay, I can’t wait,” Hoseok said and they soon said their goodnights.

Yoongi slept in the his own bed instead of out with the boys.

Taehyung was in a good mood since he woke up. He has dropped a message to Jeongguk last night but he received an answer this morning. Jeongguk has mentioned he would call right after the meeting.

Taehyung called his dad’s office and asked if he could come and his dad said he would be free by noon.

Taehyung being Taehyung reached the office by eleven. Met the staff and the employees he was familiar with. Taehyung had known most of them since he was little. He still found it astonishing how some of them haven’t left the company yet. Even in last ten years or so. Most people leave to get a fresh start of for growth.

When he reached his dad’s floor, he west to the washroom first. Taehyung was dressed. In a suit. The only thing his dad has ever asked him to do. ‘Son, always come professionally, I want people to take you seriously,’ he has said.

When Taehyung entered the washroom, he eyes landed on Jeongguk and Taehyung lit up. Jeongguk was busy splashing water on his face to notice Taehyung’s entrance.

Taehyung tiptoed and wrapped his hands around Jeongguk’s torso, giving him a back hug.

“You’d let just anyone come and hug you?” Taehyung pouted when Jeongguk didn’t respond.

“You think everyone gasps when they see me?” Jeongguk said as he placed one hand over Taehyung’s and used his other hand to grab the tissue and dry his face.

“You heard that?” Taehyung said and hugged him tighter.

“You have to stop getting so turned on by me,” Jeongguk joked as he turned around in Taehyung's arm.

At this angle, Taehyung could swore he was taller than the younger.

“You’re so irresistible, Jeon Jeongguk,” Taehyung used Jeongguk’s line on him.

“What if someone catches us?” Jeongguk said calmly.

“Then they are free to watch,” Taehyung smiled.

“What if your dad found out?” Jeongguk asked and wrapped his arms around Taehyung’s back and pulled him in.

“Then he’ll disown me,” Taehyung said and laughed. Jeongguk kissed the side of Taehyung’s lips.

“Why do you look so low?” Taehyung said and placed his hands around Jeongguk’s neck, caressed his cheeks with his thumb.

“I didn’t sleep well last night, I was too nervous for the meeting,” Jeongguk said honestly and Taehyung laughed.

“You were scared of my dad?” Taehyung asked.

“Not really, but mostly over the fact that he we don’t have much to tell your dad except for how someone destroyed your window.”

“That’s a nice way of saying that someone tried to kill me.”

“I can never say those words,” Jeongguk said and placed a quick kissed on Taehyung’s lips.

“You look down, are you sure everything is okay?” Taehyung asked, he pressed his body into Jeongguk’s and Jeongguk placed his head in the crock of Taehyung’s shoulder.

“I’ve had three cups of coffee this morning, I guess the lack of sleep is finally catching up to me,” Jeongguk said into Taehyung’s neck.

“You do know that’s not how coffee works, right?” Taehyung said and ran his hand in Jeongguk’s hair. Jeongguk laughed.

“Come over later,” Taehyung said softly, almost a whisper.

“I practically live there,” Jeongguk laughed and Taehyung smiled.

“I mean, in my room,” Taehyung said.

“That’s scandalous,” Jeongguk said.

“Maybe I wanna do scandalous things to you,” Taehyung teased and Jeongguk looked up. He straightened himself and looked directly into Taehyung’s eyes. Taehyung felt shy, his stomach doing crazy stuff.

Jeongguk pulled Taehyung in for a kiss. Jeongguk’s lips hesitant for a few seconds before he dived in deep.

“Ahem Ahem,” Someone said from the door and Taehyung and Jeongguk jumped. Taehyung pulled away so fast, he couldn’t even keep balance and tripped towards one of the stall’s door.

“What the hell Hyungsik?” Taehyung yelled.

“Oh, I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” Hyungsik crossed his hands at the back and leaned towards them.

“I swear to God I don’t know if I should hug you or just throw you out?” Taehyung yelled again and went over to give him a hug. Jeongguk with looked at the both of them with baffled expression.

“Why can’t you keep it in your pants? Specially at a workplace. Where anyone can catch you?” Hyungsik said as he hugged him back.

“I am asking dad to cut your break times.”

“If you’re here to see your dad, meet him now, he has a meeting in about an hour or so and he leaves soon,” Hyungsik said.

“I’ll get going as well,” Jeongguk said finally. He walked over to Taehyung, gripped his jaw softly and leaned him to kiss him. Deep and low. The kind of which makes you light headed.

When Jeongguk leaned back, Taehyung just kept his eyes on him.

“Stop looking at me like that, you’re worrying me,” Taehyung said and Jeongguk laughed. Placed one last kiss on his cheeks rushed out when he said, “I’ll see you soon.”

“Is this… are you guys serious? Or it’s just a one time thing?” Hyungsik asked when Jeongguk left.

“It’s new,” Taehyung said, it wasn’t a lie but he was just dogging the question.

“So, it’s serious. I see.”

“What does that mean?” Taehyung laughed and looked at Hyungsik through the mirror.

“Just, you know. You are very particular with whom you would wanna be seen out with, considering your family. And you shoving your tongue down his throat in a place outside of your bedroom. It’s new.”

“You’re making me sound like I have had so many people in my life,” Taehyung said and fixed his shirt one last time before they both walked out.

“Anyway, you’re dad is in a good mood today. I think his trip went well, which means more money.”

“Well, money does make him happy.” Taehyung stopped turned and looked at Hyungsik again, smiled and walked straight to his father’s office.

“Hey da- Mom is here!” Taehyung said cheerfully.

“Taehyung, come join us,” Mr. Kim said and gestured for Taehyung to sit down. Taehyung first went to hug his mother and then sat down to the seat opposite to his dad’s.

“Why did you want to come to the office?” His mother asked.

“Just to see you both, why?”

“Where’s Seokjin?” His father asked.

“He went to his friend’s restaurant. Said that they’re coming up with some new recipe or something.”

“And how’s work for you?”

“Well, as you’ve asked me to wait till this whole thing blows over, I’m on a break now. But I keep checking, the list of clients have increased. I have at least fifty messages.”

“Heard you broke up with Hyu?” Mr. Kim asked and Taehyung sat straight.

“Yeah. It was mutual.” It wasn’t but Taehyung could always mentioned how Hyu had a habit of sleeping around.

“Is that why he called us every day?” His dad said and Taehyung looked up. Taehyung had been suspicious of how Hyu took the fake break up so well. How he was so well behaved and so okay with it.

“Is this why you guys came back early?” Taehyung asked, his voice still calm.

“Is this about Jeongguk?” Mr. Kim asked and he saw his mom place her hand on his father’s shoulder to calm his down. Taehyung wanted to laugh.

“What about him?” Taehyung asked.

“Don’t use that tone on me?” His dad raised his voice and Taehyung looked down.

“I just… I meant to ask why you think it has anything to do with him?”

“We know what’s going on, Taehyung.”

“I don’t understand.”

“We have the camera footage of the house as well,  you know, right?” As soon as his dad said that, Taehyung froze.

“I’ve seen things I would never want to see,” his dad said.

“It’s not… it’s not how it looks like.”

“He took advantage of you, Taehyung. What more is there to understand? He saw you as someone who’s in a weak spot and he took advantage of it.”

“Dad, it’s not-”

“You don’t speak, when I’m talking.” His dad stood up and his mother look at Taehyung in guilt. Taehyung wanted to laugh.

“We pay him money to protect you. Not… not for all of… this.” His dad looked disgusted. Taehyung wanted to laugh.

“Dad… it’s not… it’s not what you think.” Taehyung was so angry that he could cry. His nervous so overwhelmed with the change of event that his whole body was hot, it felt like it was on fire.

“I have had enough of that boy. We hired them because they’re the best in the business but that men thinks he can do whatever he wants-”

“I came on to him, I lead him on,” Taehyung said, his voice so low he wasn’t sure if he was heard.

“You were in trauma, you weren’t yourself.” This was the first time his mother spoke and oh how wrong she was.

“I am completely fine,” Taehyung’s voice was shaking. His heart beat fast out of frustration and anger and… fear.

“You were not, I’m so disappointed in you, Taehyung. We expect better from you,” His dad said. They couldn’t keep going on with the conversation because since he has entered his dad’s phone has buzzed over five times and his dad has put the phone on silent all five times.

“I’ve some business to attend, I don’t want to address this anymore, make sure I never have to hear about it. You’re a bright boy, Taehyung. Hyu is the kind of person you should be with.”

“Not if you knew what he’s like,” Taehyung said slowly, he didn’t wanted to disrespect his parents.

“He’s a perfectly fine boy, we’ve known him for years. Now, go home, we’ll see you for dinner.” Taehyung stood up silently. His head was ringing.

Then it hit Taehyung, he turned with wide eyes and asked, “Is that why Jeongguk was here?”

His father said nothing, picked his phone and made a call.

“Mom, tell me you didn’t say anything to him,” Taehyung's voice was breaking.

His mother looked down and that was all the confirmation he needed.

Taehyung lost all his senses, he couldn’t see, his vision a mix or blurry and hazy. He wasn’t running but he was panting. He couldn’t focus.

“Hey, hey Taehyung, are you okay?” someone asked. Taehyung wasn’t sure who.

“What’s happening?” A woman’s voice.

“Home… take me home...” Taehyung manage to let out and he wasn’t sure who escorted him out.

When he got in the car the girl offered him water.

“You’ll be okay,” she said and Taehyung drank half of the water in one go. He was sure he was going to throw up.

The car started and when it got on the main road when was when Taehyung turned to look at the person.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Taehyung asked, his voice more weak than annoyed.

“I came to talk to you.”

“Una, don’t do this. I don’t have the energy or time.”

“I just… I wanted to apologize, Tae, we-”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Please, you have to hear me out. I didn’t mean it to happen,” Una said. Her eyes fixed on the road.

“Stop talking, just… stop.”

“Taehy-”

“Don’t speak,” Taehyung yelled.

“My head hurts, I can’t hear, I can’t understand. Anything you say now, I’ll probably forget. Just stop talking. We can talk some other day, just not today.”

Taehyung wanted to yell, he wanted to scream, he wanted to cry. Taehyung sat straight and folded his arms.

“Can this day get any worse?” Taehyung said to himself, tears forming in his eyes.

His thoughts lead back to Jeongguk, he knew. He knew everything and yet he didn’t say anything. Jeongguk already met his dad. Was that why Jeongguk looked so lost, so small and afraid. He looked hurt. Was that why Jeongguk kissed him like that? Held him like that?

“You’re home,” Una said when Taehyung was lost in his thoughts, he didn’t even register the place at first.

Taehyung didn’t even say thank you, he said nothing, he undid his seatbelt and jolted inside.

“Jeongguk,” Taehyung yelled and no one came out.

“Jeongguk, Jeon Jeongguk,” Taehyung yelled again and went to check his room. No one was there. He rushed towards his room and when he entered, his heart dropped.

“Where is he?” Taehyung asked, his voice smaller than it was before.

“Taehyung-”

“Where is he, Yoongi? Why are you here?” Taehyung went down on his knees, unable to stand still. He looked at Yoongi, praying for something, anything.

“Jeongguk has been replaced. I’m your new bodyguard,” Yoongi said.

“I’m...” Taehyung sobbed, “so sorry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I'm here again.
> 
> Please love PARK JIMIN, HE IS THE ONLY MAN EVER.
> 
> i hope you're enjoying the story and thank you so much for reading it.  
> Let me know what you think.
> 
> I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU!

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing a fic on BTS. So, please do let me know what y'all think of this. Kudos and comments are welcomed. Any type of feedback will help.  
> I'll try and update as and when I'll get the time.  
> Find me on Twitter **[LimJaebeomie](http://twitter.com/limjaebeomie)** and on tumblr **[limsjaebeom ](http://limsjaebeom.tumblr.com)** and on curiouscat **[limjaebeomie](https://curiouscat.me/limjaebeomie) ** drop by to talk or something.


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